Norm Smith
Encyclopedia
Norman Walter "Norm" Smith (21 November 1915, Clifton Hill, Victoria
– 29 July 1973, Pascoe Vale, Victoria
) was an Australian rules football
player and coach
in the Victorian Football League
. After 200 games as a player with Melbourne
and Fitzroy
, Smith began a twenty year coaching career, including a fifteen year stint at Melbourne. Recognised as the father of modern Australian football coaching, Smith coached Melbourne to six premierships and in 1996 was chosen as the coach of the AFL Team of the Century.
(born 9 February 1912) were the sons of ironworker
Victor Smith and Ethel May (née
Brown). After attending Westgarth Central School, Smith completed an engineering apprenticeship and worked at Millers rope
-works in Brunswick
. In 1943 he took over his father's engineering business in Northcote
, later relocating it to North Coburg in 1954. On 19 October 1940 he married Marjorie Victoria Ellis, at the Wesley Church in Melbourne
. Their only child, Peter
, was born in 1947.
and Australian football. His first club football was for Dennis, which played in the sub-district competition, where his brother Len had started his career. When scouts for VFL club Melbourne arrived at the Smith household to sign Len, Victor Smith suggested that young Norm might make the grade as well. Melbourne were ambitiously rebuilding their side and Smith made his debut under legendary coach Frank 'Checker' Hughes
in 1935. Ironically, while Norm's career blossomed at Melbourne, brother Len failed to nail down a regular place and he moved to the VFA and later to Fitzroy
to further his career.
, Smith quickly developed an understanding with teammate Ron Baggott
and earned a reputation as a cool-headed, "thinking" player. He favoured the pass to a man in a better position, the quick handball, the tap on and the shepherd for a teammate with the ball. One scribe commented that he "could make a forward line work around him" and he was the epitome of a team player. The Melbourne team was rising fast: they played finals in 1936 and 1937, but lost to more experienced opponents both times. The team took a step back in 1938, finishing fifth, but looked the team most likely throughout 1939.
Under Hughes, a successful former Richmond
player and coach, Melbourne had remade themselves into a more professional outfit, after many years as an amateur club. Smith was one of many talented players who adhered to Hughes' doctrine. Now renamed the Red Demons (later to become simply the Demons), Melbourne went into the 1939 finals with a team based on all-out attack, with Smith the linchpin. In the Grand Final
against Collingwood, Melbourne booted a record Grand Final score and set a new record winning margin, taking only their second premiership in 39 years. Another flag
was won in 1940 when Smith was the star, scoring seven goals in the Grand Final. The following year, the team marked themselves as a special combination by completing the hattrick, despite missing players due to war service and injury on Grand Final
day. Smith enjoyed his most productive season and finished the year as the VFL's leading goalkicker. He continued playing during the war years in a decimated Melbourne team. In 1944
Smith won The Herald newspaper's best player award.
. Poor form and a loss of confidence led to Smith resigning the captaincy for 1948 and it seemed that, at 32, his career was winding down. Melbourne were thrashed by Essendon in the second semi final and were long odds to win the premiership. However, in something of a miracle, previously retired champion Jack Mueller was recalled to the team and in the next three games (which included a tied and replayed Grand Final) Smith and Mueller combined to dominate the scoring and lead the Demons to an unlikely premiership. Deciding that it was a perfect note on which to end his marathon career, 'Checker' Hughes retired as coach and Smith was a keen applicant for the position.
when, attempting to equal Collingwood's great four in a row record, the Demons were baited into losing their concentration by a fanatical Collingwood team.
, to move to Carlton in 1965 as captain-coach. Barassi lived with Smith and his wife from the time he was 15 – Barassi became the older man's protege and the two enjoying a unique relationship. Smith supported Barassi's aspirations, offering to stand aside so Barassi could coach Melbourne. When Barassi rejected this proposal and insisted on a clearance to the Blues, some Melbourne officials unfairly accused Smith of ridding himself of a potential rival. Another factor was Smith's sometimes acid tongue, which he sometimes turned on committeemen he felt were interfering in his domain. This facet of the Smith personality put him in a difficult situation when he was sued by an umpire for defamation. In defending the action, Smith found no support from the men running his club.
Finally, the situation exploded on the Friday night before the round 13, 1965 match with North Melbourne. A courier delivered a termination notice to Smith at his home. When the news leaked to the media, it created a sensation, arguably the most dramatic news story in Australian football history. Smith made an emotional appearance on television on the Sunday and speculation was rife that he would replace his ill brother, now coaching Richmond. Although he was reinstated within a week, he never again enjoyed his old relationship with the club. The Demons won only one more game for the year and missed the finals for the first time in eleven years. In a matter of a few dramatic months, Melbourne's dominance was dismantled. The Demons wouldn't make the finals again until 1987, and have not won a premiership since the dismissal, which is sometimes superstitiously attributed to the Curse of Norm Smith.
Smith's influence was wide-ranging. He increased the importance of the coach in Australian football with innovations such as using a runner for sending messages to his players (in 1955). He raised the standards of fitness and team discipline, which enable the evolution of the so-called "running game" in the 1970s. Although his blunt manner of speaking and intolerance for fools sometimes led him to conflict, he was universally admired and respected for his insightful thinking on the game and his mantra that teamwork was all. Although he was known as a great orator and a stern taskmaster, he was a quiet and retiring man away from the game. Paradoxically, he played and coached largely for the love of the game yet did as much as anyone else to move it forward from a semi-professional sport.
, awarded to the best player in the Grand Final. The first winner was Norm Smith's great nephew, Carlton player Wayne Harmes
(Len Smith's grandson). He received the medal from Norm's widow, Marj. As the game has evolved, the medal has taken on a status that rivals the Brownlow Medal
. During the 1970s Smith's son Peter played for Melbourne and Carlton in the VFL and for Coburg in the VFA as a full-forward and was Coburg's leading goalkicker for a season.
On 19 July 2007 Norm Smith became just the second coach to be inducted into the AFL Hall of Fame as a Legend.
Clifton Hill, Victoria
Clifton Hill is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 4 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. The border between Clifton Hill and Fitzroy North is Queens Parade and Smith Street. Merri Creek defines the eastern border of Clifton Hill. Its Local Government Area is...
– 29 July 1973, Pascoe Vale, Victoria
Pascoe Vale, Victoria
Pascoe Vale is a western suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 10 km north from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Moreland. At the 2006 Census, Pascoe Vale had a population of 13,558.- History :...
) 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...
player and coach
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
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...
. After 200 games as a player with Melbourne
Melbourne Football Club
The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Demons, is an Australian rules football club playing in the Australian Football League , based in Melbourne, Victoria....
and Fitzroy
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...
, Smith began a twenty year coaching career, including a fifteen year stint at Melbourne. Recognised as the father of modern Australian football coaching, Smith coached Melbourne to six premierships and in 1996 was chosen as the coach of the AFL Team of the Century.
Personal life
Smith and his elder brother LenLen Smith (footballer)
Like his younger brother, the legendary Norm Smith, it is as a coach that Len is best remembered. During his first stint as a coach, of the Fitzroy Under 19s , he guided the side to the 1955 Premiership. His first senior coaching role was with Fitzroy, taking them to the finals in 1958 and 1960...
(born 9 February 1912) were the sons of ironworker
Ironworks
An ironworks or iron works is a building or site where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and/or steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e...
Victor Smith and Ethel May (née
NEE
NEE is a political protest group whose goal was to provide an alternative for voters who are unhappy with all political parties at hand in Belgium, where voting is compulsory.The NEE party was founded in 2005 in Antwerp...
Brown). After attending Westgarth Central School, Smith completed an engineering apprenticeship and worked at Millers rope
Rope
A rope is a length of fibres, twisted or braided together to improve strength for pulling and connecting. It has tensile strength but is too flexible to provide compressive strength...
-works in Brunswick
Brunswick, Victoria
Brunswick is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 6 km north from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Moreland...
. In 1943 he took over his father's engineering business in Northcote
Northcote, Victoria
Northcote is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 7 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Darebin...
, later relocating it to North Coburg in 1954. On 19 October 1940 he married Marjorie Victoria Ellis, at the Wesley Church in Melbourne
Wesley Church, Melbourne
Wesley Church is a Uniting Church in the centre of Melbourne, in the State of Victoria, Australia.Wesley Church was originally built as the central church of the Wesleyan movement in Victoria. It is named after John Wesley , the founder of Methodism...
. Their only child, Peter
Peter V. Smith
Peter Victor Smith is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Melbourne and Carlton in the Victorian Football League ....
, was born in 1947.
Playing career
A brilliant all-round sportsman in his youth, Smith played first-grade district cricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
and Australian football. His first club football was for Dennis, which played in the sub-district competition, where his brother Len had started his career. When scouts for VFL club Melbourne arrived at the Smith household to sign Len, Victor Smith suggested that young Norm might make the grade as well. Melbourne were ambitiously rebuilding their side and Smith made his debut under legendary coach Frank 'Checker' Hughes
Frank 'Checker' Hughes
Frank 'Checker' Hughes was a famous player and coach of Australian rules football in the Victorian Football League in the period 1914 to 1948....
in 1935. Ironically, while Norm's career blossomed at Melbourne, brother Len failed to nail down a regular place and he moved to the VFA and later to Fitzroy
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...
to further his career.
Outstanding on-field success
Smith became a regular in the first team in 1937. Usually playing as full-forwardFull-forward
Full-forward is a position in Australian rules football and Gaelic football with a key focus on kicking goals.Leading full-forwards of the Australian Football League are usually among those awarded with the Coleman Medal for the most goals in an AFL season....
, Smith quickly developed an understanding with teammate Ron Baggott
Ron Baggott
Ron Baggott is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Melbourne in the Victorian Football League . He later captain-coached Brunswick.He is the younger brother of Jack Baggott who played for Richmond....
and earned a reputation as a cool-headed, "thinking" player. He favoured the pass to a man in a better position, the quick handball, the tap on and the shepherd for a teammate with the ball. One scribe commented that he "could make a forward line work around him" and he was the epitome of a team player. The Melbourne team was rising fast: they played finals in 1936 and 1937, but lost to more experienced opponents both times. The team took a step back in 1938, finishing fifth, but looked the team most likely throughout 1939.
Under Hughes, a successful former Richmond
Richmond Football Club
The Richmond Football Club, nicknamed The Tigers, is an Australian rules football club which competes in the Australian Football League. Richmond shares healthy rivalries with Carlton, Collingwood and Essendon. After winning five premierships between 1967 and 1980, the club hit the depths in 1990,...
player and coach, Melbourne had remade themselves into a more professional outfit, after many years as an amateur club. Smith was one of many talented players who adhered to Hughes' doctrine. Now renamed the Red Demons (later to become simply the Demons), Melbourne went into the 1939 finals with a team based on all-out attack, with Smith the linchpin. In the Grand Final
AFL Grand Final
The AFL Grand Final is an annual Australian rules football match, traditionally held on the final Saturday in September at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia to determine the Australian Football League premiership champions for that year...
against Collingwood, Melbourne booted a record Grand Final score and set a new record winning margin, taking only their second premiership in 39 years. Another flag
Pennant (sports)
A pennant is a commemorative flag typically used to show support for a particular athletic team. Pennants have been historically used in all types of athletic levels: high school, collegiate, professional etc. Traditionally, pennants were made of felt and fashioned in the official colors of a...
was won in 1940 when Smith was the star, scoring seven goals in the Grand Final. The following year, the team marked themselves as a special combination by completing the hattrick, despite missing players due to war service and injury on Grand Final
1941 VFL Grand Final
The 1941 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Melbourne Football Club and Essendon Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 27 September 1941. It was the 45th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine...
day. Smith enjoyed his most productive season and finished the year as the VFL's leading goalkicker. He continued playing during the war years in a decimated Melbourne team. In 1944
1944 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1944.-Influence of World War II:The wartime travel restrictions that had forced Geelong into recess the previous two years were relaxed, and Geelong rejoined the competition....
Smith won The Herald newspaper's best player award.
Captaincy and the Miracle of '48
Smith was appointed captain of the club in 1945, leading the Demons to their first Grand Final defeat in 19461946 VFL Grand Final
The 1946 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Essendon Football Club and Melbourne Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 5 October 1946. It was the 50th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers for...
. Poor form and a loss of confidence led to Smith resigning the captaincy for 1948 and it seemed that, at 32, his career was winding down. Melbourne were thrashed by Essendon in the second semi final and were long odds to win the premiership. However, in something of a miracle, previously retired champion Jack Mueller was recalled to the team and in the next three games (which included a tied and replayed Grand Final) Smith and Mueller combined to dominate the scoring and lead the Demons to an unlikely premiership. Deciding that it was a perfect note on which to end his marathon career, 'Checker' Hughes retired as coach and Smith was a keen applicant for the position.
Coaching career
Disappointingly for Smith, the committee decided (by a single vote) to award the job to ex-Melbourne premiership skipper, Allan LaFontaine. Anxious to begin coaching, Smith made an emotionally difficult decision to transfer to Fitzroy as captain-coach. He played only seventeen games with the 'Roys before retiring as a player in 1950. His time at Fitzroy was a mixed bag: the team was competitive without making the finals. Meanwhile, Melbourne were struggling and LaFontaine resigned after three years. So in 1952, Smith returned to Melbourne as coach. Benefiting from the recruitment of some of the best players in the club's history, Smith and Melbourne dominated the VFL for a decade, during which the club won six premierships: 1955-56-57, 1959–60 and 1964.Coaching style
A stickler for team discipline, Smith was variously called the 'Demon Dictator' and the 'Martinet of Melbourne'. His canniness and brushed-back auburn hair earned him another nickname: the 'Red Fox'. Smith built his success on an espirit de corps, creating close-knit teams during Melbourne's years of greatness that were the envy of the other eleven clubs. Many sought to emulate his methods and create a similar atmosphere for their own clubs. Norm and Len Smith (who coached Fitzroy from 1958 to 1962) led the move toward a quicker, play-on style of football. Melbourne sides under Smith were fast, disciplined, fit and confident. The only real lapse of discipline came in the 1958 Grand Final1958 VFL Grand Final
The 1958 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Melbourne Football Club and Collingwood Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 20 September 1958. It was the 62nd annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the...
when, attempting to equal Collingwood's great four in a row record, the Demons were baited into losing their concentration by a fanatical Collingwood team.
The dismissal
From 1964 tension began to build between Smith and several influential figures at Melbourne. One factor was the decision by Melbourne's star player, Ron BarassiRon Barassi
Ronald Dale Barassi, Jr AM is a former Australian rules football player and coach. During a long and decorated career, Barassi has been one of the most important figures in the history of Australian football. His father, Ron Barassi, Sr., was the first Australian footballer killed at Tobruk during...
, to move to Carlton in 1965 as captain-coach. Barassi lived with Smith and his wife from the time he was 15 – Barassi became the older man's protege and the two enjoying a unique relationship. Smith supported Barassi's aspirations, offering to stand aside so Barassi could coach Melbourne. When Barassi rejected this proposal and insisted on a clearance to the Blues, some Melbourne officials unfairly accused Smith of ridding himself of a potential rival. Another factor was Smith's sometimes acid tongue, which he sometimes turned on committeemen he felt were interfering in his domain. This facet of the Smith personality put him in a difficult situation when he was sued by an umpire for defamation. In defending the action, Smith found no support from the men running his club.
Finally, the situation exploded on the Friday night before the round 13, 1965 match with North Melbourne. A courier delivered a termination notice to Smith at his home. When the news leaked to the media, it created a sensation, arguably the most dramatic news story in Australian football history. Smith made an emotional appearance on television on the Sunday and speculation was rife that he would replace his ill brother, now coaching Richmond. Although he was reinstated within a week, he never again enjoyed his old relationship with the club. The Demons won only one more game for the year and missed the finals for the first time in eleven years. In a matter of a few dramatic months, Melbourne's dominance was dismantled. The Demons wouldn't make the finals again until 1987, and have not won a premiership since the dismissal, which is sometimes superstitiously attributed to the Curse of Norm Smith.
A brief return to the finals
After two more disappointing seasons, heart disease compelled Smith to resign from Melbourne at the end of 1967. It was a sad year for the Smith family, as brother Len had succumbed to a heart attack just months before his adopted club Richmond won the premiership. Feeling sufficiently recovered, Smith surprised many by accepting an offer to coach South Melbourne in 1969. At Albert Park, Smith pulled off what was considered one of his best coaching performances by taking the down trodden Swans to the 1970 semi final, their first finals appearance since 1945. However, the under-resourced and under-confident Swans couldn't sustain the effort and finished last and second last in the next two years. Smith resigned after the 1972 season.Death and legacy
Meanwhile, Ron Barassi was creating a stir in the football world. After his immensely successful stint at Carlton, he had been lured to work his magic on North Melbourne, the only team without a premiership. Smith planned to assist Barassi at North when his health again deteriorated. He died of a cerebral tumour on 29 July 1973 in his home at Pascoe Vale, survived by his wife and son. Smith's estate was sworn for probate at $22,683.Smith's influence was wide-ranging. He increased the importance of the coach in Australian football with innovations such as using a runner for sending messages to his players (in 1955). He raised the standards of fitness and team discipline, which enable the evolution of the so-called "running game" in the 1970s. Although his blunt manner of speaking and intolerance for fools sometimes led him to conflict, he was universally admired and respected for his insightful thinking on the game and his mantra that teamwork was all. Although he was known as a great orator and a stern taskmaster, he was a quiet and retiring man away from the game. Paradoxically, he played and coached largely for the love of the game yet did as much as anyone else to move it forward from a semi-professional sport.
Norm Smith Medal
In 1979, the VFL instituted the Norm Smith MedalNorm Smith Medal
The Norm Smith Medal is the award given in the AFL Grand Final to the player adjudged by an independent panel of experts to have been the best player in the match.-History:The Norm Smith Medal is named after former Melbourne player and coach, Norm Smith...
, awarded to the best player in the Grand Final. The first winner was Norm Smith's great nephew, Carlton player Wayne Harmes
Wayne Harmes
Wayne Harmes is a retired Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League.-Football career:Recruited from Oak Park, as a youngster Harmes was perceived to have a lot of talent, winning The Sun newspapers' "Sunkick" competition. Added to this was the fact he was a grandson of Len Smith...
(Len Smith's grandson). He received the medal from Norm's widow, Marj. As the game has evolved, the medal has taken on a status that rivals 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...
. During the 1970s Smith's son Peter played for Melbourne and Carlton in the VFL and for Coburg in the VFA as a full-forward and was Coburg's leading goalkicker for a season.
On 19 July 2007 Norm Smith became just the second coach to be inducted into the AFL Hall of Fame as a Legend.
External links
- The Red Fox – The Biography of Norm Smith, Legendary Melbourne Coach
- Australian Dictionary of Biography: Smith, Norman Walter (1915–1973)
- Full Points Footy bio
- AFL Hall of Fame
| Norm Smith Premiership Teams | |
|---|---|