David Edgar Ferguson (21 March 1875 – 10 June 1920) 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 Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...

er who played for the

Essendon Football Club The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed the Bombers or colloquially the Dons, is a professional Australian rules football club that plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), the game's premier competition. The club was formed by the McCrac ...

in the

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football competition in Australia operated by the Australian Football League (AFL) as a second-tier, regional, semi-professional competition. It includes teams from clubs based in east ...

(VFL), and for the

West Melbourne Football Club The West Melbourne Football Club was an Australian rules football club which played in the Victorian Football Association (VFA). Its senior side competed in the VFA from 1878 through 1908, its peak as a club coming after it won the 1906 premie ...

in the

Victorian Football Association The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football competition in Australia operated by the Australian Football League (AFL) as a second-tier, regional, semi-professional competition. It includes teams from clubs based in east ...

(VFA).

Family

The son of John Ferguson, and Mary Ann Ferguson, née May, David Edgar Ferguson was born at

Linton, Victoria Linton is a town in Victoria, Australia, off Glenelg Highway. Most of the town is located in Golden Plains Shire; however, a small section is in the Shire of Pyrenees. At the , Linton and the surrounding area had a population of 580. The Cl ...

on 21 March 1875. He married Myrtle Adele Glassbrenner (1895-1970) in 1908. They had four children, one of whom (their firstborn, Adolph) died in his infancy; the others were David Edgar Ferguson (1910–1988), John Adolph Ferguson (1911–1989), and Agnes May Ferguson (1915–1988).

Football

Essendon (VFL)

In 1897, the first year of the VFL competition, he was recruited by Essendon from West Melbourne Juniors in the Victorian Junior Football Association (VJFA): "Essendon expect great things from Ferguson, a half-back from West Melbourne, who has just joined their team" (''The Herald'', 20 August 1897). Under the captaincy of

George Stuckey George Stuckey (6 July 1871 – 15 March 1932) was an Australian rules footballer who played with and captained the Essendon Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Football Stuckey played as both a wingman and half back during h ...

, he made his debut for Essendon in the semi-final played against Collingwood, on 28 August 1897, at the

Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as the 'G, is a sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadium in the Southern Hemisphere, the Lis ...

: "Ferguson, from the West Melbourne Juniors, shaped vigorously on the half-back line" (''The Australasian'', 4 September 1897). Again taken from the West Melbourne Juniors, he played in his second and final match for Essendon, against Carlton, at Princes Park, on 24 May 1898.

West Melbourne (VFA)

In 1899, he transferred from the West Melbourne Juniors in the VJFA to the

in that team's first year in the VFA competition. Overall he played in 21 Games for West Melbourne: eighteen in 1899; one in 1900; and two in 1901.

Death

He died at Victoria Park, Daylesford, Victoria on 10 June 1920.Deaths: Ferguson, ''The Argus'', (Friday, 18 June 1920), p.1.
/ref>

Notes

References

* Maplestone, M., ''Flying Higher: History of the Essendon Football Club 1872–1996'', Essendon Football Club, (Melbourne), 1996.

External links

Ferguson, David E.; Past Player Profiles, Essendon Football Club
*
Dave Ferguson's playing statistics
from ''The VFA Project''. * 1875 births Essendon Football Club players West Melbourne Football Club players Essendon Football Club premiership players Australian rules footballers from Victoria (state) 1920 deaths VFL/AFL premiership players 19th-century Australian sportsmen {{AFL-bio-1870s-stub