Alan Thaw was an Australian rules football

Australian rules football

Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...

er who played for Essendon

Essendon Football Club

The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...

 in the VFL

Australian Football League

The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...

 during the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Recruited locally, Thaw was a back pocket

Back pocket

In Australian rules football, the back pocket refers to a position on the field deep in defence.Back pocket players, situated in the backline, need to have good spoiling skills and usually, quality back-pockets are noted for their hardness....

 in Essendon's 1949 premiership side. He retired in 1954 and the following season was put in charge of the Reserves team, coaching them until 1959. In the 1959 VFL season

1959 VFL season

Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1959.-Premiership season:In 1959, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus two substitute players, known as the 19th man and the 20th man...

 he coached Essendon to a win over Fitzroy when Dick Reynolds

Dick Reynolds

Richard Sylvannus 'Dick' Reynolds was an Australian rules footballer and coach who represented Essendon and Victoria with great distinction....

was unavailable. From 1960 to 1976, Thaw was coach of Essendon's Under-19s and steered them to premierships in 1961 and 1966.