Vladimir "Val" Perovic ( hr, Perović; born 25 September 1953) is a former

Australian rules 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 ...

footballer who played with St Kilda and

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 VFL. Born in

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

(at the time part of

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

), Perovic emigrated to

Ballarat Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resid ...

in Australia with his family in 1958, at the age of four. Despite starting his career as a wingman, Perovic played mostly as a defender and was a centre half-back when he first represented Victoria in 1978. After 77 games with St Kilda during the 1970s he moved to Carlton in a trade involving

Alex Jesaulenko Oleksandr "Alex" Jesaulenko ( ; uk, Олександр Васильович Єсауленко, Oleksandr Vasiliovych Yesaulenko, ; born 2 August 1945) is a former Australian rules footballer and who played for the Carlton Football Club and t ...

. He was a member of Carlton premiership teams in 1981 and 1982, playing in the

back pocket In the sport of Australian rules football, each of the eighteen players in a team is assigned to a particular named position on the field of play. These positions describe both the player's main role and by implication their location on the gro ...

. Perovic was noted for his long right-foot kicks. During his time at Carlton, fans would shout "woof!" every time he kicked the ball. Perovic was the first Carlton player whose kicks were acknowledged in this way. This chant, originally based on the crowd mimicking a grunt that Perovic would make when kicking the ball, has since become a traditional chant bestowed upon later long-kicking left-footed Carlton players; specifically,

Ang Christou Ang Christou (born 16 January 1972) is a former Australian rules footballer for Carlton in the Australian Football League. Football career Christou played for the Carlton Football Club and along with Anthony Koutoufides was a popular figure a ...

in the 1990s,

Chris Bryan Chris Bryan (born 6 March 1982 in Melbourne, Australia) is a former sportsman who played both Australian rules football and American football professionally. Bryan played in the Australian Football League from 2005 until 2009, and then in the N ...

in the 2000s, Matthew Watson in the 2010s, and

Adam Saad Adam Saad (born 23 July 1994) is an Australian rules footballer currently playing for the Carlton Football Club in the Australian Football League. He previously played for the Gold Coast Suns and the Essendon Football Club. Early career As a ...

in the 2020s. Perovic often polled well in the

Brownlow Medal The Charles Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal (and informally as "Charlie"), is awarded to the " best and fairest" player in the Australian Football League (AFL) during the home-and-away season, as determined by votes cast by ...

, finishing as St Kilda's top vote-getter in the 1978 award and twice for Carlton, which included an eighth placing in

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...

. Perovic lived in Ballarat throughout his VFL career, commuting to Melbourne twice a week for training and then again for matches on the weekend. He worked in the building industry."Life After AFL Footy - Val Perovic"
AFL YouTube, 7 June 2012.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Perovic, Val 1953 births Living people VFL/AFL players born outside Australia North Ballarat Football Club players Carlton Football Club players Carlton Football Club Premiership players St Kilda Football Club players Yugoslav emigrants to Australia Australian people of Croatian descent Australian rules footballers from Ballarat Two-time VFL/AFL Premiership players