Full name George David Challis Height/Weight 177 cm / 79 kg Date of birth 9 February 1891 Name George Challis | ||
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Date of death 15 July 1916(1916-07-15) (aged 25) Role Australian Rules Footballer Died July 15, 1916, Armentieres, France | ||
Place of birth Cleveland, Tasmania Original team Launceston Football Club Place of death Armentieres, France | ||
George David Challis (9 February 1891 – 15 July 1916) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Carlton in the Victorian Football League (VFL) during the early 1910s.
Challis was a Tasmanian and started his career at Launceston, where he was a premiership player in 1909 and regular NTFA representative at the State Championships. He also represented Tasmania at the 1911 Adelaide Carnival, participating in their famous win over Western Australia. During this time he played mainly as a half forward or rover but when he was lured to Carlton in 1912 he soon established himself as a wingman. It was in that position that he starred in Carlton's 1915 premiership team.
He almost missed out on the chance to win a premiership as he had attempted to join the army at the beginning of the season, only to be refused because his toes overlapped. A teacher by profession, he was eventually signed up and served with the 58th Infantry Battalion on the Western Front. Challis, by then a Sergeant, was killed in action when a heavy-calibre German artillery shell dropped into his trench in Armentières, France.