Donald Pruen Cordner (21 January 1922 – 13 May 2009), M.B.B.S. 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 with

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

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) during the 1940s. His brothers Denis,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

and Ted also played for the club.

Playing career

Cordner played for

Melbourne University The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...

prior to joining the VFL, studying medicine when not on the football field. A ruckman who was also used in defence, Cordner made his debut for Melbourne in the 1941 finals series, playing in their winning grand final in just his second appearance for the club. Rarely injured, he played 144 consecutive games between 1942 and 1950. In 1943, Cordner was named the inaugural winner of the

Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Medal The Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Trophy is an Australian rules football award presented annually to the player(s) adjudged the best and fairest at the Melbourne Football Club throughout the Victorian Football League/Australian Football League (VFL/A ...

. Although Melbourne had been awarding the club Best & Fairest since 1935, it had remained unnamed until coach "Checker" Hughes dedicated the award to Truscott's memory after the Melbourne star and Air Force pilot perished in a training exercise earlier that year. Cordner also created history when he became the first

Melbourne Cricket Club The Melbourne Cricket Club (MCC) is a sports club based in Melbourne, Australia. It was founded in 1838 and is one of the oldest sports clubs in Australia. The MCC is responsible for management and development of the Melbourne Cricket Ground, ...

member to win 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 t ...

in 1946 and also the only amateur player to win the Medal. He also finished equal sixth in the 1947 Brownlow Medal count. He was club captain in 1948 and 1949, the former in a premiership season. He also captained

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

in interstate football in the same year. Cordner was also the first

member to receive the Brownlow Medal. He retired from football after the 1950 season.

Life after Football

Cordner continued to be heavily involved with football while running his medical practice at Diamond Creek. He was a member of the VFL Tribunal in 1962 and 1963 and sat on the board of the Melbourne Football Club for two stints - from 1957-58 and 1964-71. He also served on the

committee and was MCC President between 1985 and 1992. In 2000 he was named 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 ...

in Melbourne's official Team of the Century. Don Cordner died on 13 May 2009 at age 87. When the

AFLW AFL Women's (AFLW) is Australia's national semi-professional Australian rules football league for female players. The first season of the league in February and March 2017 had eight teams; the league expanded to 10 teams in the 2019 season, 1 ...

competition was formed in 2017, his granddaughter Harriet was able to continue the Cordner link to Melbourne when she was picked in Melbourne's inaugural team.

References

Bibliography

External links

* *
DemonWiki profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cordner, Don 1922 births 2009 deaths People educated at Melbourne Grammar School Australian rules footballers from Melbourne Melbourne Football Club players Brownlow Medal winners Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Trophy winners Melbourne Football Club captains Melbourne Football Club Premiership players Two-time VFL/AFL Premiership players People from Diamond Creek, Victoria Medical doctors from Melbourne

Playing career

Life after Football

See also

References

Bibliography

External links