Michael Francis Nolan (9 November 1949 – 27 May 2008) 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 for the

North Melbourne Football Club The North Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed the Kangaroos, is a professional Australian rules football club. The men's team competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), and the women's team in the AFL Women's (AFLW). The Kangaroos also ...

in the

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

(VFL). Because of his weight of 135 kg and height of 194 cm, Nolan was dubbed "The Galloping

Gasometer A gas holder or gasholder, also known as a gasometer, is a large container in which natural gas or town gas is stored near atmospheric pressure at ambient temperatures. The volume of the container follows the quantity of stored gas, with pressu ...

" by commentator

Lou Richards Lewis Thomas Charles "Lou" Richards, (15 March 1923 – 8 May 2017) was an Australian rules footballer who played 250 games for the Collingwood Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) between 1941 and 1955. He captained the team ...

. Until the emergence of Aaron Sandilands (only 120 kg) in the early 2000s, Nolan was the heaviest ruckman to play

VFL/AFL The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

football. He was nevertheless surprisingly agile and regarded as one of the best "palm" ruckmen of the 1970s. Nolan had a long kick and was unusually effective, for a big man, in picking up the ball at ground level. As a child in

Tarrawingee, Victoria Tarrawingee is a town in north eastern Victoria, Australia. The town is located in the Rural City of Wangaratta local government area, north east of the state capital, Melbourne. At the , Tarrawingee and the surrounding area had a population of ...

, Nolan supported St Kilda and had the ambition of playing in their first ever premiership. He was recruited by North Melbourne from

Wangaratta Rovers The Wangaratta Rovers, officially known as the Wangaratta Rovers Football & Netball Club, is an Australian rules football club based in Wangaratta, Victoria and play in the Ovens & Murray Football League. Their nickname is the Hawks. Their h ...

and made his senior debut in 1973. North Melbourne rover

Barry Cable Barry Thomas Cable MBE (born 22 September 1943) is a former Australian rules footballer and coach. Considered one of the greatest rovers in the sport's history, he played in 379 premiership games in the Western Australian Football League (WAFL) ...

said that Nolan was the best tap ruckman he had played with, because of his ability to palm the ball directly into Cable's hands. Nolan's efforts were rewarded with a place in the Kangaroos' team for the

1975 VFL Grand Final The 1975 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the North Melbourne Football Club and the Hawthorn Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 27 September 1975. It was the 78th annual Gra ...

, a game in which he dominated the ruck, playing a crucial part in North's first premiership. Nolan finished third that year in voting for the Kangaroos' best and fairest, the Syd Barker Medal. This in itself was remarkable, given that nine members of the 1975 Kangaroos team were later included in the

Australian Football Hall of Fame The Australian Football Hall of Fame was established in 1996, the Centenary year of the Australian Football League, to help recognise the contributions made to the sport of Australian rules football by players, umpires, media personalities, coa ...

. In a famous incident, during a game 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 ...

Arden Street Arden Street Oval (also known as North Melbourne Cricket Ground) is a sports oval in North Melbourne, Victoria, North Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria. It is currently the training base of the North Melbourne Football Club, an Australia ...

, Carlton player

Mark Maclure Mark Maclure (born 14 July 1955) is a former Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Originally from New South Wales club East Sydney, Maclure was recruited by Carlton and made his senior VFL debut in Round 13, ...

while running for the ball, decided to run into Nolan, who stood his ground and looked likely to be knocked over. However, Maclure bounced off Nolan and fell to the ground, while Nolan casually went about the game as if nothing had happened. Despite playing 19 games in 1977, Nolan did not play in the 1977 VFL Grand Final, after being replaced in the ruck by

Peter Keenan Peter Patrick Pius Paul "Crackers" Keenan (born 7 April 1951) is a former Australian rules footballer who worked as a strapper for Bart Cummings, and played with Melbourne Football Club, Melbourne, Essendon Football Club, Essendon and North Me ...

in the semi-final. He played in the reserves the following week, injuring his shoulder and ruling him out of making the senior grand final team. After Nolan finished his career with North Melbourne in 1980, he was recruited by then VFL president

Allen Aylett Allen James Aylett OBE (24 April 1934 – 16 September 2022) was an Australian rules football player and administrator. He was the chairman/president of the North Melbourne Football Club from 1971 to 1976, and then again from 2001 to 2005. I ...

, to move to

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, to develop Australian rules in that

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

-dominated state. Nolan coached the Mayne Tigers in the

QAFL The Queensland Australian Football League (QAFL) is an Australian rules football competition organised by the AFL Queensland, contested by clubs from South East Queensland. Previously known as the Queensland Football League (QFL), Queensland ...

from 1981 to 1986, winning a flag in 1982. Nolan also served as captain and coach of the Queensland state team. Nolan died on 27 May 2008 following a short battle with

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

and was buried at Pinnaroo Cemetery in Brisbane.Nolan Michael Francis
— Brisbane City Council Grave Location Search. Retrieved 18 May 2015.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Nolan, Mick North Melbourne Football Club players North Melbourne Football Club Premiership players Mayne Australian Football Club players Wangaratta Rovers Football Club players Australian rules footballers from Victoria (Australia) 1949 births 2008 deaths Deaths from cancer in Australia Burials at Pinnaroo Cemetery, Brisbane One-time VFL/AFL Premiership players