Merv McIntosh
Encyclopedia
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 in the (then) 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). A brilliant 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...
, he was awarded 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...
as the fairest and best player in the league three times while playing with the Perth Football Club
Perth Football Club
The Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Demons, is an Australian rules football club playing in the West Australian Football League . The club plays its matches at Lathlain Park.-History:...
.
Merv McIntosh played 217 games for Perth (severely curtailed by the World War II years), plus 20 state games for Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
in the period 1939 to 1955. In a richly rewarded career he won three Sandover Medals, three 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....
s and a 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....
(at the 1953 Adelaide Carnival
1953 Adelaide Carnival
The 1953 Adelaide Carnival was the 12th edition of the Australian National Football Carnival, an Australian rules football interstate competition...
). He was named in the 1953 All-Australian Team
All-Australian Team
The All-Australian Team is an all star team of Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. It represents a complete team, including interchange players and a coach, of the best performed during the season....
.
His Simpson Medal winning performance in his last game, propelling Perth to a two-point victory in the 1955 grand final (Perth's first for 48 years), is legendary. At half-time, East Fremantle
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...
had a 34-point lead, but in the third quarter McIntosh led his side to get within two points at the last change. In the final quarter, kicking into the wind, Perth managed to get in front and hold East Freo at bay to win 11.11 (77) to 11.9 (75). McIntosh's strategy was to stay in the dead pocket and repeatedly kick the ball out-of-bounds.
He won seven 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...
awards for his club. At his peak he was regarded by many as Australia's premier ruckman. He is depicted in a Western Australian state guernsey in Jamie Cooper's painting the Game That Made Australia, commissioned by the AFL in 2008 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the sport.
Career highlights
- Perth 217 games
- 24 State games
- Perth Captain 1947-1950, 1952
- Perth Fairest & Best 1946-1950, 1952, 1954
- Sandover Medallist 1948, 1953, 1954
- Simpson Medallist 1952, 1953, 1955
- All-Australian 1953
The Merv McIntosh Entrance to the Subiaco Oval
Subiaco Oval
Subiaco Oval , known colloquially as Subi, is the highest capacity sports stadium in Perth, Western Australia...
is named in his honour. http://www.wafootball.com.au/subiaco-oval-entrances.html
In 1996, Merv McIntosh 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...
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In 2004, he was inducted into Legend Status in 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...
.