Bruce Lake is a former 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 with Essendon

Essendon Football Club

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

 and Footscray

Western Bulldogs

The Western Bulldogs are an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based at the Whitten Oval in West Footscray, an inner-western suburb of Melbourne...

 in the Victorian Football League

Australian Football League

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

 (VFL).

Lake, who came from Metung, made his league debut in the fifth round of the 1968 VFL season

1968 VFL season

Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1968.-Premiership season:In 1968, 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...

. Four rounds later he would be joined in the side by his younger brother Eddie.

Although primarily a forward, Lake was also used as a ruckman

Ruckman (Australian rules football position)

In Australian rules football, a ruckman is typically a tall and athletic player who contests at centre bounces and stoppages . The ruckman is one of the most important players on the field...

 and was Essendon's 19th man in the 1968 VFL Grand Final

1968 VFL Grand Final

The 1968 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Carlton Football Club and Essendon Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 28 September 1968. It was the 72nd annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine...

.

He switched to Footscray in 1971 but played just two games and finished the season at Waverley

Waverley Football Club

Waverley Football Club, nicknamed The Panthers, was an Australian rules football club which played in the Victorian Football Association from 1961 until 1987...

 in the Victorian Football Association

Victorian Football League

The Victorian Football League which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association , taking its new name as from the 1996 season, is the premier Australian rules football league in Victoria The Victorian Football League (VFL) which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association...

.