Graham Farmer
Encyclopedia
Graham Vivian "Polly" Farmer, MBE
(born 10 March 1935) is a retired Australian rules football
player and coach. Born in Western Australia, he joined the East Perth Football Club
as a ruckman
in 1953, where he won several awards and contributed to the team winning three premierships. He was recruited to the Victorian Football League
(VFL) league in 1962 for the Geelong Football Club
, where he played 101 games and captained the team for three seasons. Farmer returned to Western Australia and became the captain/coach of the West Perth Football Club
in 1968, leading the club to premierships against East Perth in 1969 and 1971. After retiring as a player, he coached Geelong, East Perth and Western Australia's first state of origin team.
Farmer is an official Legend
of Australian rules football, and he revolutionised ruckwork and handballing
. The Graham Farmer Freeway
in his hometown of Perth
is named in his honour.
's home in Queen's Park
, a church home "for the delicate, sick and destitute". Farmer said, "If it had not been for Sister Kate, I would have had an ice block's hope in hell of ever leading a normal life. I owe her and all her dedicated helpers everything – for giving me the chance to make something of myself. I was one of the lucky ones." A bout of poliomyelitis
left Farmer with his left leg shorter than his right leg. According to Farmer, he was nicknamed "Polly the Parrot" as a six-year-old because people thought he chattered away like a parrot. At high school, Farmer was spotted by talent scouts for East Perth Football Club
, and joined the team.
in the West Australian National Football League
(WANFL) in 1953. Farmer played 176 games from 1953 to 1961 with East Perth. During this time he won the club's Fairest and Best award seven times, and was a member of their 1956, 1958 and 1959 Premiership teams. In 1956, he was awarded a Simpson Medal
for his performance against South Australia in the Perth Carnival
, and later he also awarded the Tassie Medal
for being judged best in the Carnival overall. He was awarded the WANFL's highest individual honour, the Sandover Medal
, in 1956 and 1960. He also tied for the medal in 1957 with East Fremantle's
Jack Clarke
but lost on a countback; he was awarded that medal in 1997 when the WAFL awarded retrospective
medals for those who missed out on countbacks. In 1959 he was awarded the Simpson Medal
for being best on ground in the Grand Final. He was awarded another Simpson Medal in 1961 for his game against Victoria in the Brisbane Carnival
.
Bob Davis recruited Farmer to the Geelong Football Club
in the VFL in 1962. In the opening moments of his debut for Geelong in 1962, Farmer severely injured his knee, causing ligament damage, and missing the rest of the season. Farmer returned in 1963, winning a Premiership with Geelong and coming equal-second in the Brownlow Medal
behind winner Bob Skilton
. Farmer played 101 games for Geelong from 1962 to 1968, won the team's Fairest and Best in 1963 and 1964, and captained the team from 1965 to 1967.
In 1968, he desired to return home to Western Australia and accepted the role of captain/coach with the West Perth Football Club
, rivals to his former club, East Perth. He led West Perth to premierships in 1969 and 1971, both times defeating East Perth in the Grand Final. In 1969, Farmer received his fourth Simpson Medal during the AFC Championships in Adelaide. He retired from playing football in 1971, aged 36, after 76 games with West Perth.
Not involved in top level football in 1972, Farmer returned to the VFL as coach of the Geelong Football Club from 1973 to 1975. Farmer and the club's committee had an increasingly strained relationship, and Farmer quit in 1975. He returned to the WANFL, coaching East Perth from 1976 to 1977 with some success, and he coached the first Western Australian state of origin team in 1977. Farmer was sacked as coach of East Perth in 1977 due to conflict, and replaced by Barry Cable
in 1978. Farmer said, "When the going gets tough a club should stick together and fight to beat it. But some people chip and chip at the ground underneath you in trying to find someone to blame. I do my best in football and I have no time to protect my back, so it's left wide open. Maybe that's a lot of my trouble."
During his career, Farmer played a record 31 games for Western Australia, five games for Victoria, and was selected in the All-Australian team in 1956, 1958 and 1961. He played 356 league games in total, including 30 finals, 10 grand finals and six premierships.
Farmer was a strong, skilled and mobile ruckman
. At 191 centimetres (75.2 in) tall and weighing 94 kilograms (207.2 lb), Farmer had a naturally high leap that helped him to win ruck contests easily. Farmer practiced handballing
through car windows at the car yard where he worked, and one of his football legacies is changing handballing from a last-resort option to a "dangerous offensive weapon". According to Geelong player Sam Newman
, "without speaking one word he [Farmer] taught me everything I know. I watched how a man overcomes not the physical, not the mental, but the spiritual – that's the most important – he was an absolute star, about one decade, one century ahead of his time".
n woman holidaying in Perth
named Marlene, and they married in 1957. They have three children, Brett, Dean and Kim. In the 1960s, former Geelong player Neil Trezise
approached Farmer about representing the Australian Labor Party
in the seat of Corio
. Farmer declined.
Farmer established the Polly Farmer Foundation, joined by Sir Ronald Wilson
, former High Court judge, Fred Chaney
, former Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, and Greg Durham, chief executive of Geelong Football Club. One of the foundation's patrons is Ernie Dingo
. Farmer explained, "I want the foundation to be of practical assistance to young Aboriginal people with potential to do something with their lives… Not just sport, but in the professions and business. We want to develop links with the tertiary institutions and make sure Aboriginal people become leaders."
Farmer and his wife Marlene sold their house in 1992 and ran a two-star Southway Auto Lodge motel
in South Perth
until 1998, when they were evicted by the motel's owners after failing to pay rent. Farmer said the business failed due to the downturn in the Asian economy and a 40% drop in tourist numbers, and left him with no money or assets. He said, "We have nothing and we are back to square one. But we didn't borrow money to keep the business going. All my life I have helped myself and there is no reason why I can't still do that". Farmer and Marlene were given temporary accommodation in the caretaker's flat in the Main Roads building. Two fundraising events were organised in Perth and Melbourne by John Watts
, Bob Davis and Sam Newman
, raising $120,000. A trust fund was established with the money and a small villa bought in Innaloo.
Farmer worked for 6PR
during the football season and promoted the Graham Farmer Freeway
for Main Roads Western Australia
until June 2000. In 2000, he put up for sale his 1956, 1957 and 1960 Sandover medals and MBE
to fund his retirement.
when he was named a Member of the Order of the British Empire
(MBE) in the New Year honours list. Farmer's name was included in the 150 bronze tablets set into the footpath along St Georges Terrace, Perth
that commemorate notable figures in Western Australia's history, as part of the WAY 1979
celebrations.
On 6 October 1997, WA Transport Minister Eric Charlton
announced that the $400 m Northern City Bypass would be named the Graham Farmer Freeway
. Charlton said, "He already has a place in WA sporting folklore and it is fitting that a showpiece of the city's transport network should bear his name… The northern traffic bypass system links West Perth and East Perth which are, coincidentally, the two districts which Graham Farmer represented with distinction on the football arena".
He was inducted into the inaugural Australian Football Hall of Fame
in 1996 as one of the twelve official "Legends", and then into the West Australian Football Hall of Fame
in 2004. He has been nominated as the first ruckman in every Team of the Century for each of the two leagues and three clubs for which he participated, plus the Indigenous Team of the Century
, in which he was the captain. In 2008, Farmer was named at number 5 in The Age
s top football players of all time. Farmer is depicted contesting a boundary throw-in with Carlton ruckman John Nicholls (the other ruckman in the AFL Team of the Century) in Jamie Cooper's painting the Game That Made Australia, commissioned by the AFL in 2008 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the sport
MBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
(born 10 March 1935) is a retired 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...
player and coach. Born in Western Australia, he joined the East Perth Football Club
East Perth Football Club
The East Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Royals, is an Australian rules football club that is a member of the West Australian Football League...
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...
in 1953, where he won several awards and contributed to the team winning three premierships. He was recruited to 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) league in 1962 for the Geelong Football Club
Geelong Football Club
The Geelong Football Club, nicknamed The Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club, named after and based in the city of Geelong, playing in the Australian Football League . The club has been the VFL/AFL premiers nine times, with a record equalling 3 in the AFL era. Geelong has also...
, where he played 101 games and captained the team for three seasons. Farmer returned to Western Australia and became the captain/coach of the West Perth Football Club
West Perth Football Club
The West Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Falcons, is an Australian rules football club located in Joondalup, Western Australia, competing in the West Australian Football League . It is the oldest existing Australian rules football club in Western Australia. It competes in the West Australian...
in 1968, leading the club to premierships against East Perth in 1969 and 1971. After retiring as a player, he coached Geelong, East Perth and Western Australia's first state of origin team.
Farmer is an official Legend
Australian Football Hall of Fame
The Australian Football Hall of Fame was established in 1996, the Centenary year of the Australian Football League, to help recognise the contributions made to the sport of Australian rules football by players, umpires, media personalities, coaches and administrators. It was initially established...
of Australian rules football, and he revolutionised ruckwork and handballing
Handball (Australian rules football)
Handball is a term in the sport of Australian rules football which describes a method of disposing of possession of the football by hand. It is the most frequently used alternative to kicking the ball...
. The Graham Farmer Freeway
Graham Farmer Freeway
The Graham Farmer Freeway is a major part of the metropolitan road infrastructure in Perth, Western Australia. It is long and links Rivervale and East Perth with West Perth, bypassing Perth's central business district...
in his hometown of Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
is named in his honour.
Early life
When Farmer was 21 months old, he and his brothers and sisters were taken to Sister KateKatherine Mary Clutterbuck
Katherine Mary Clutterbuck, MBE , usually known as Sister Kate, was an Anglican nun who pioneered a cottage home system for looking after orphan babies and children in Western Australia...
's home in Queen's Park
Queens Park, Western Australia
Queens Park is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, located within the City of Canning. Its postcode is 6107.-History:The suburb derives its name from the former Queens Park Road Board that was incorporated into the Canning and Belmont Road Boards....
, a church home "for the delicate, sick and destitute". Farmer said, "If it had not been for Sister Kate, I would have had an ice block's hope in hell of ever leading a normal life. I owe her and all her dedicated helpers everything – for giving me the chance to make something of myself. I was one of the lucky ones." A bout of poliomyelitis
Poliomyelitis
Poliomyelitis, often called polio or infantile paralysis, is an acute viral infectious disease spread from person to person, primarily via the fecal-oral route...
left Farmer with his left leg shorter than his right leg. According to Farmer, he was nicknamed "Polly the Parrot" as a six-year-old because people thought he chattered away like a parrot. At high school, Farmer was spotted by talent scouts for East Perth Football Club
East Perth Football Club
The East Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Royals, is an Australian rules football club that is a member of the West Australian Football League...
, and joined the team.
Football career
Farmer began his top-level career with the East Perth Football ClubEast Perth Football Club
The East Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Royals, is an Australian rules football club that is a member of the West Australian Football League...
in the West Australian National Football League
West Australian Football League
The West Australian Football League is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The WAFL is the second-most popular in the state, behind the nation-wide Australian Football League...
(WANFL) in 1953. Farmer played 176 games from 1953 to 1961 with East Perth. During this time he won the club's Fairest and Best award seven times, and was a member of their 1956, 1958 and 1959 Premiership teams. In 1956, he was awarded a Simpson Medal
Simpson Medal
The Simpson Medal, a prize for Australian rules football, has been donated by Dr. Fred Simpson and family since 1945. It is awarded to the best player in a WAFL Grand Final and the best player in an interstate game involving Western Australia....
for his performance against South Australia in the Perth Carnival
1956 Perth Carnival
The 1956 Perth Carnival was the 13th edition of the Australian National Football Carnival, an Australian rules football interstate competition. It took place from 11 June to 23 June at Subiaco Oval, Perth....
, and later he also awarded the Tassie Medal
Tassie Medal
The Tassie Medal was awarded to the outstanding player at each Australian rules football Interstate Carnival or Australian interstate championship series held between 1937 and 1988 with the exception of the 1975 knock-out series....
for being judged best in the Carnival overall. He was awarded the WANFL's highest individual honour, the Sandover Medal
Sandover Medal
The Sandover Medal is an Australian rules football award, given annually since 1921 to the fairest and best player in the West Australian Football League...
, in 1956 and 1960. He also tied for the medal in 1957 with East Fremantle's
East Fremantle Football Club
The East Fremantle Football Club, nicknamed the Sharks, is an Australian rules football club playing in the West Australian Football League . The team's home ground is East Fremantle Oval...
Jack Clarke
Jack K. Clarke
John Kildahl "Jack" Clarke was an Australian rules footballer in the Western Australian National Football League .Clarke played as a ruckman for East Fremantle, making his debut in 1952...
but lost on a countback; he was awarded that medal in 1997 when the WAFL awarded retrospective
Retrospective
Retrospective generally means to take a look back at events that already have taken place. For example, the term is used in medicine, describing a look back at a patient's medical history or lifestyle.-Music:...
medals for those who missed out on countbacks. In 1959 he was awarded the Simpson Medal
Simpson Medal
The Simpson Medal, a prize for Australian rules football, has been donated by Dr. Fred Simpson and family since 1945. It is awarded to the best player in a WAFL Grand Final and the best player in an interstate game involving Western Australia....
for being best on ground in the Grand Final. He was awarded another Simpson Medal in 1961 for his game against Victoria in the Brisbane Carnival
1961 Brisbane Carnival
The 1961 Brisbane Carnival was the 15th edition of the Australian National Football Carnival, an Australian rules football interstate competition. It was the last carnival to be held in Queensland....
.
Bob Davis recruited Farmer to the Geelong Football Club
Geelong Football Club
The Geelong Football Club, nicknamed The Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club, named after and based in the city of Geelong, playing in the Australian Football League . The club has been the VFL/AFL premiers nine times, with a record equalling 3 in the AFL era. Geelong has also...
in the VFL in 1962. In the opening moments of his debut for Geelong in 1962, Farmer severely injured his knee, causing ligament damage, and missing the rest of the season. Farmer returned in 1963, winning a Premiership with Geelong and coming equal-second in the Brownlow Medal
Brownlow Medal
The Chas Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal , is awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the Australian Football League during the regular season as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game...
behind winner Bob Skilton
Bob Skilton
Robert John "Bob" Skilton was an Australian rules football player who played as a rover for South Melbourne and Victoria between 1956 and 1971....
. Farmer played 101 games for Geelong from 1962 to 1968, won the team's Fairest and Best in 1963 and 1964, and captained the team from 1965 to 1967.
In 1968, he desired to return home to Western Australia and accepted the role of captain/coach with the West Perth Football Club
West Perth Football Club
The West Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Falcons, is an Australian rules football club located in Joondalup, Western Australia, competing in the West Australian Football League . It is the oldest existing Australian rules football club in Western Australia. It competes in the West Australian...
, rivals to his former club, East Perth. He led West Perth to premierships in 1969 and 1971, both times defeating East Perth in the Grand Final. In 1969, Farmer received his fourth Simpson Medal during the AFC Championships in Adelaide. He retired from playing football in 1971, aged 36, after 76 games with West Perth.
Not involved in top level football in 1972, Farmer returned to the VFL as coach of the Geelong Football Club from 1973 to 1975. Farmer and the club's committee had an increasingly strained relationship, and Farmer quit in 1975. He returned to the WANFL, coaching East Perth from 1976 to 1977 with some success, and he coached the first Western Australian state of origin team in 1977. Farmer was sacked as coach of East Perth in 1977 due to conflict, and replaced by Barry Cable
Barry Cable
Barry Cable is an Australian former Australian rules footballer who played in the West Australian National Football League and Victorian Football League . Cable played as a rover. He won the Sandover Medal three times while playing with the Perth Football Club.-Club career:Cable played 225 games...
in 1978. Farmer said, "When the going gets tough a club should stick together and fight to beat it. But some people chip and chip at the ground underneath you in trying to find someone to blame. I do my best in football and I have no time to protect my back, so it's left wide open. Maybe that's a lot of my trouble."
During his career, Farmer played a record 31 games for Western Australia, five games for Victoria, and was selected in the All-Australian team in 1956, 1958 and 1961. He played 356 league games in total, including 30 finals, 10 grand finals and six premierships.
Farmer was a strong, skilled and mobile 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...
. At 191 centimetres (75.2 in) tall and weighing 94 kilograms (207.2 lb), Farmer had a naturally high leap that helped him to win ruck contests easily. Farmer practiced handballing
Handball (Australian rules football)
Handball is a term in the sport of Australian rules football which describes a method of disposing of possession of the football by hand. It is the most frequently used alternative to kicking the ball...
through car windows at the car yard where he worked, and one of his football legacies is changing handballing from a last-resort option to a "dangerous offensive weapon". According to Geelong player Sam Newman
Sam Newman
John Noel William "Sam" Newman is a retired Australian rules football player and current television personality. He is a featured presenter on the AFL version of The Footy Show.-VFL career:...
, "without speaking one word he [Farmer] taught me everything I know. I watched how a man overcomes not the physical, not the mental, but the spiritual – that's the most important – he was an absolute star, about one decade, one century ahead of his time".
Personal life
In 1956, Farmer met a TasmaniaTasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
n woman holidaying in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
named Marlene, and they married in 1957. They have three children, Brett, Dean and Kim. In the 1960s, former Geelong player Neil Trezise
Neil Trezise
Neil Benjamin Trezise was an footballer in the VFL and Australian Labor Party politician, of Cornish descent.-Football career:...
approached Farmer about representing the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
in the seat of Corio
Corio
Corio may refer to*Corio, Victoria*Division of Corio*Corio, Piedmont, a commune in the province of Turin, northern Italy*Corio, a Dutch real property company...
. Farmer declined.
Farmer established the Polly Farmer Foundation, joined by Sir Ronald Wilson
Ronald Wilson
Sir Ronald Darling Wilson, AC, KBE, CMG, QC was a distinguished Australian lawyer, judge and social activist serving on the High Court of Australia between 1979 and 1989 and as the President of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission between 1990 and 1997.Wilson is probably best known as...
, former High Court judge, Fred Chaney
Fred Chaney
Frederick Michael Chaney, AO is a former Western Australian politician who, until April 2007, held the position of deputy chairman of the Australian Native Title Tribunal and is Chair of Desert Knowledge Australia and on the Board of Directors of Reconciliation Australia.Chaney was born in Perth,...
, former Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, and Greg Durham, chief executive of Geelong Football Club. One of the foundation's patrons is Ernie Dingo
Ernie Dingo
Ernie Dingo AM is an Indigenous Australian actor and television presenter originating from the Yamatji people of the Murchison region of Western Australia.-Background:...
. Farmer explained, "I want the foundation to be of practical assistance to young Aboriginal people with potential to do something with their lives… Not just sport, but in the professions and business. We want to develop links with the tertiary institutions and make sure Aboriginal people become leaders."
Farmer and his wife Marlene sold their house in 1992 and ran a two-star Southway Auto Lodge motel
Motel
A motor hotel, or motel for short, is a hotel designed for motorists, and usually has a parking area for motor vehicles...
in South Perth
South Perth, Western Australia
South Perth is a residential suburb 3 kilometres south of the central business district of Perth, the capital of Western Australia, which adjoins the southern shore of Perth Water on the Swan River...
until 1998, when they were evicted by the motel's owners after failing to pay rent. Farmer said the business failed due to the downturn in the Asian economy and a 40% drop in tourist numbers, and left him with no money or assets. He said, "We have nothing and we are back to square one. But we didn't borrow money to keep the business going. All my life I have helped myself and there is no reason why I can't still do that". Farmer and Marlene were given temporary accommodation in the caretaker's flat in the Main Roads building. Two fundraising events were organised in Perth and Melbourne by John Watts
John Watts (Australian rules footballer)
John Albert Watts is a retired Australian rules football player and former radio broadcaster.-Personal life:...
, Bob Davis and Sam Newman
Sam Newman
John Noel William "Sam" Newman is a retired Australian rules football player and current television personality. He is a featured presenter on the AFL version of The Footy Show.-VFL career:...
, raising $120,000. A trust fund was established with the money and a small villa bought in Innaloo.
Farmer worked for 6PR
6PR
6PR, known as 882 6PR, is a commercial radio station based in Perth, Australia. Its focus is on news, talk and sport, and is Perth's only commercial talkback radio station. 6PR is owned by Fairfax Media, an Australian media company that owns television and radio businesses throughout Australia and...
during the football season and promoted the Graham Farmer Freeway
Graham Farmer Freeway
The Graham Farmer Freeway is a major part of the metropolitan road infrastructure in Perth, Western Australia. It is long and links Rivervale and East Perth with West Perth, bypassing Perth's central business district...
for Main Roads Western Australia
Main Roads Western Australia
Main Roads Western Australia is an agency of the Government of Western Australia that is responsible for implementing the state's policies on road access and main roads. It operates under the Main Roads Act 1930 ....
until June 2000. In 2000, he put up for sale his 1956, 1957 and 1960 Sandover medals and MBE
MBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
to fund his retirement.
Legacy
In 1971 he became the first Australian footballer to receive a Queen's honourChivalric order
Chivalric orders are societies and fellowships of knights that have been created by European monarchs in imitation of the military orders of the Crusades...
when he was named a Member of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(MBE) in the New Year honours list. Farmer's name was included in the 150 bronze tablets set into the footpath along St Georges Terrace, Perth
St Georges Terrace, Perth
St Georges Terrace is the main street in the city of Perth, Western Australia. It runs parallel to the Swan River and forms the major arterial road through the central business district....
that commemorate notable figures in Western Australia's history, as part of the WAY 1979
WAY 1979
WAY '79, also referred to as WAY 79 and WAY 1979, was the official 1979 sesquicentennial celebration of the colonisation of Western Australia by Europeans.-Planning:...
celebrations.
On 6 October 1997, WA Transport Minister Eric Charlton
Eric Charlton
Eric James Charlton is a former Australian politician.Charlton was elected to the Western Australian Legislative Council in 1984 as a National Party member for Agricultural Region, replacing the deceased MLC William Atkinson. He served in the Council until his resignation in 1998...
announced that the $400 m Northern City Bypass would be named the Graham Farmer Freeway
Graham Farmer Freeway
The Graham Farmer Freeway is a major part of the metropolitan road infrastructure in Perth, Western Australia. It is long and links Rivervale and East Perth with West Perth, bypassing Perth's central business district...
. Charlton said, "He already has a place in WA sporting folklore and it is fitting that a showpiece of the city's transport network should bear his name… The northern traffic bypass system links West Perth and East Perth which are, coincidentally, the two districts which Graham Farmer represented with distinction on the football arena".
He was inducted into the inaugural Australian Football Hall of Fame
Australian Football Hall of Fame
The Australian Football Hall of Fame was established in 1996, the Centenary year of the Australian Football League, to help recognise the contributions made to the sport of Australian rules football by players, umpires, media personalities, coaches and administrators. It was initially established...
in 1996 as one of the twelve official "Legends", and then into the West Australian Football Hall of Fame
West Australian Football Hall of Fame
The West Australian Football Hall of Fame was created in 2002 to recognise and enshrine those who have made a significant contribution to Australian rules football in Western Australia...
in 2004. He has been nominated as the first ruckman in every Team of the Century for each of the two leagues and three clubs for which he participated, plus the Indigenous Team of the Century
Indigenous Team of the Century
The Indigenous Team of the Century was selected to recognise the role of Indigenous Australians in the sport. It was announced in 2005 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the first senior game played by an indigenous player, Fitzroy's Joe Johnson...
, in which he was the captain. In 2008, Farmer was named at number 5 in The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
s top football players of all time. Farmer is depicted contesting a boundary throw-in with Carlton ruckman John Nicholls (the other ruckman in the AFL Team of the Century) in Jamie Cooper's painting the Game That Made Australia, commissioned by the AFL in 2008 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the sport