John Schultz
Encyclopedia
John Schultz is a former Australian rules football
player, who played for the Footscray Football Club
in the (then) Victorian Football League
(VFL) and is one of the club's greatest players.
He had been a champion high-jumper at Caulfield Grammar School
, winning the senior high jump
at the 1955 Associated Grammar Schools
Combined Athletics Meeting (as had South Melbourne's Jim Taylor
in 1948). He also played for the school's First XVIII, a team which also contained other future VFL players, Ron Evans of Essendon, and Ron Cabble of Hawthorn.
John Schulz was considered a "gentle giant", known as much for his fairness as for his brilliance. An effective knock ruckman, he was acclaimed for good tackling, elegant marking and hard, fair bumping. Compared with others of his day, Schultz had exceptional stamina and he seemed to be able to run just as quickly at the end of a match as he had at its beginning.
Schultz was recruited by Footscray from country side Boort
, having previously played briefly with Caulfield Grammarians in the Victorian Amateur Football Association
(he broke his arm at the opening bounce of the first Caulfield Grammarians' practice match of the 1956 season).
His VFL career spanned 10 years and 188 games (kicking 39 goals). From debut in 1958 he played eight years without missing a game - 169 consecutive matches - before a knee injury sidelined him in June 1965.
Schultz won the Brownlow Medal
in 1960 (when only 21 years old) by one vote from Fitzroy's
Kevin Murray. He was Footscray's Best and Fairest
Player five times (1960, 1962, 1964–66). Schultz played for Victoria
21 times, and was an All-Australian in 1961.
Schultz played as an amateur (i.e., he received no payment). He played his entire VFL
with the great Ted Whitten
as his captain, and retired in 1968, aged only twenty-nine, to help manage the family grocery business. Fittingly for a man who was known for his fairness and never once reported, Schultz later served on the league tribunal. His younger brother Robert, also from Caulfield Grammar School, played two senior games for Footscray in 1963.
In 2002, he was named to a back pocket
of the Footscray/Western Bulldogs Team of the Century.
In 1996 Schultz was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame
with the following citation:
Player honors:
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, who played for the Footscray Football Club
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 (then) 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) and is one of the club's greatest players.
He had been a champion high-jumper at Caulfield Grammar School
Caulfield Grammar School
Caulfield Grammar School is an independent, co-educational, Anglican, day and boarding school, located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1881 as a boys' school, Caulfield began admitting girls exactly one hundred years later...
, winning the senior high jump
High jump
The high jump is a track and field athletics event in which competitors must jump over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without the aid of certain devices in its modern most practiced format; auxiliary weights and mounds have been used for assistance; rules have changed over the years....
at the 1955 Associated Grammar Schools
Associated Grammar Schools of Victoria
The Associated Grammar Schools of Victoria are a group of nine independent schools in Victoria, Australia, formed in 1920. The AGSV provides the basis for interschool sporting competition between the nine member schools in a range of sports....
Combined Athletics Meeting (as had South Melbourne's Jim Taylor
Jim Taylor (Australian footballer)
James "Jim" Taylor is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1950s.-Athletics:...
in 1948). He also played for the school's First XVIII, a team which also contained other future VFL players, Ron Evans of Essendon, and Ron Cabble of Hawthorn.
John Schulz was considered a "gentle giant", known as much for his fairness as for his brilliance. An effective knock ruckman, he was acclaimed for good tackling, elegant marking and hard, fair bumping. Compared with others of his day, Schultz had exceptional stamina and he seemed to be able to run just as quickly at the end of a match as he had at its beginning.
Schultz was recruited by Footscray from country side Boort
Boort, Victoria
Boort is a town in Victoria, Australia, located next to Lake Boort, in the Shire of Loddon. At the 2006 census, Boort had a population of 773. The town is known for its native birdlife...
, having previously played briefly with Caulfield Grammarians in the Victorian Amateur Football Association
Victorian Amateur Football Association
The Victorian Amateur Football Association is an Australian rules football league in Victoria, Australia consisting purely of amateur players. Unlike the Victorian Football League and the VFL/AFL, the VAFA has always been strictly a purely amateur league and has affiliations with both AFL Victoria...
(he broke his arm at the opening bounce of the first Caulfield Grammarians' practice match of the 1956 season).
His VFL career spanned 10 years and 188 games (kicking 39 goals). From debut in 1958 he played eight years without missing a game - 169 consecutive matches - before a knee injury sidelined him in June 1965.
Schultz won 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...
in 1960 (when only 21 years old) by one vote from Fitzroy's
Fitzroy Football Club
The Fitzroy Football Club, formerly nicknamed The Lions, is an Australian rules football club formed in 1883 to represent the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria and was a foundation member club of the Victorian Football League on its inception in 1897...
Kevin Murray. He was Footscray's Best and Fairest
Best and Fairest
Best and Fairest is the term commonly used in Australian sport to describe the player adjudged to have had the best performance in a game or over a season for a given sporting club or competition while not receiving a suspension for misconduct or breaching the rules during that season.In the...
Player five times (1960, 1962, 1964–66). Schultz played for Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
21 times, and was an All-Australian in 1961.
Schultz played as an amateur (i.e., he received no payment). He played his entire 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...
with the great Ted Whitten
Ted Whitten
Edward James "EJ" Whitten was an Australian rules football player and media personality. He played a then-record 321 Victorian Football League games for the Footscray Football Club between 1951 and 1970...
as his captain, and retired in 1968, aged only twenty-nine, to help manage the family grocery business. Fittingly for a man who was known for his fairness and never once reported, Schultz later served on the league tribunal. His younger brother Robert, also from Caulfield Grammar School, played two senior games for Footscray in 1963.
In 2002, he was named to 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....
of the Footscray/Western Bulldogs Team of the Century.
In 1996 Schultz was inducted into the 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...
with the following citation:
- Rucking giant who never let the side down. Set the standard for the modern ruckman.
Career highlights
Playing career:- Footscray 1958-1968 (Games: 188 Goals: 37)
Player honors:
- Brownlow Medal 1960
- Footscray Best & Fairest 1960, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1966
- All-Australian 1961
- Victorian representative (24 games, 3 goals)