Maurice Edward Sheahan (1905-1956) was an

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

er who played in the VFL between 1929 and 1936 for the

Richmond Football Club The Richmond Football Club, nicknamed the Tigers, is an Australian rules football team playing in the Australian Football League (AFL). Between its inception in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond in 1885 and 1907, the club competed in the Victo ...

. Originally from Ballarat, Sheahan was already twenty-three when he joined the Tigers, but his hard and tough defensive play transformed a team renowned for its attacking power in the 1920s into a rock-like defensive unit that defied the powerful attacks of Collingwood and later

South Melbourne South Melbourne is an inner suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3 km south of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Port Phillip local government area. South Melbourne recorded a population of 11,548 at t ...

to make the Grand Final every year from 1931 to 1934 and have the meanest defence every year from 1932 to 1935. Sheahan was a member of Richmond's legendary "''Three Musketeers''" backline of Bolger, Sheahan and

O'Neill The O'Neill dynasty (Irish: ''Ó Néill'') are a lineage of Irish Gaelic origin, that held prominent positions and titles in Ireland and elsewhere. As kings of Cenél nEógain, they were historically the most prominent family of the Northern ...

. He played in the premiership teams of 1932 and 1934 as well as the losing

Grand Final Primarily in Australian sports, a grand final (sometimes colloquially abbreviated to "grannie") is a game that decides a sports league's premiership (or championship) winning team, i.e. the conclusive game of a finals (or play-off) series. Sy ...

sides of 1929 and 1933. In an incident that was remembered for decades after it occurred, Sheahan was famously penalised for time-wasting in the dying minutes of the close top-of-the-ladder – match in Round 8, 1933 after setting up to kick in after a behind with a

place kick The place kick is a type of kicking play commonly used in American football, association football (soccer), Canadian football, rugby league, and rugby union. Gridiron football Place kicks are used in American football and Canadian football for ...

– despite the fact that time was off until the kick-in was executed. South Melbourne's subsequent goal narrowed the deficit to five points, but the final bell sounded soon afterwards and Richmond still won the game. Injuries, however, affected Sheahan's career quite badly: he was kept out of seven games early in the 1931 season by a broken arm and weight problems caused Sheahan to lose form so badly that he was actually ''omitted'' from the club's two 1931 finals.''The Age''; 25 September 1931; p. 12 He recovered well until 1936, when Richmond omitted Sheahan for the third game upon his announcement he would not play against

Carlton Carlton may refer to: People * Carlton (name), a list of those with the given name or surname * Carlton (singer), English soul singer Carlton McCarthy * Carlton, a pen name used by Joseph Caldwell (1773–1835), American educator, Presbyterian ...

in the fourth round due to his marriage. Sheahan never recovered his form and retired at the end of the season, but was awarded Life Membership of the

in 1938 and went on to serve as the Club Secretary in 1939. His son, John, played seventeen games for the

Tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...

in the early and mid-1960s.

References

* Hogan P: ''The Tigers Of Old'', Richmond FC, Melbourne 1996 {{DEFAULTSORT:Sheahan, Maurie 1905 births 1956 deaths Australian rules footballers from Victoria (state) Australian Rules footballers: place kick exponents South Ballarat Football Club players Richmond Football Club players Richmond Football Club premiership players VFL/AFL premiership players