Full name John Cameron Sheedy Name Jack Sheedy Years Club | Position(s) Rover Height/Weight 171 cm / 83 kg | |
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Nickname(s) "Mr. Football", "The Reverend" Date of birth (1926-09-28) 28 September 1926 (age 89) | ||
John Cameron "Jack" Sheedy (born 28 September 1926) is a former Australian rules footballer and coach. He played for East Fremantle and East Perth in the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL) and South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Sheedy is considered one of the greatest ever footballers from Western Australia, and is a member of both the Australian and West Australian Football Halls of Fame. Overall, he played 360 senior football matches from 1946 to 1962, kicking 528 goals, and coached 272 games, with a winning percentage of 65%.
Contents
- Early career and naval service
- Return to Western Australia
- Transfer to East Perth
- Coaching career
- Honours
- Reputation
- Personal life
- References
Early career and naval service
The son of A. F. "Barney" Sheedy, a former East Fremantle player and WAFL interstate representative, Sheedy attended Richmond State School in East Fremantle and Fremantle Boys' School in Fremantle, captaining both schools' football teams. He also led the school's batting averages at cricket, and later played First Grade cricket for the Fremantle Cricket Club in the Western Australian Grade Cricket competition. After leaving school, he played for Fremantle in the Fremantle Ex-Scholars competition, before making his debut for East Fremantle in the age-restricted WANFL competition in 1942. He won the Lynn Medal as the club's best and fairest in 1943, and played in East Fremantle's premiership win over Swan Districts. He enlisted in the Royal Australian Navy in March 1944, at only 17 years of age, and was immediately posted to Melbourne, Victoria. He was signed by South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL), where he played six games, kicking seven goals. Sheedy's unit then went to Sydney in 1946, where he played with Sydney Naval, including in their 1944 premiership win in the New South Wales Australian National Football League (NSWANFL). He had kicked the winning goal in the preliminary final against Newtown the previous week with less than three minutes remaining in the match. He kicked 12 goals in three rounds before he returned to Western Australia.
Return to Western Australia
Sheedy immediately began playing with East Fremantle.
Transfer to East Perth
Sheedy transferred to East Perth for the 1956 season, where he was immediately appointed captain-coach of the club.
Coaching career
Sheedy served as captain-coach of East Perth from 1956 to 1961, and as non-playing coach from 1962 to 1964, with one final season in 1969.
Honours
In 2001 Sheedy was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame. In 2004 he was inducted to the West Australian Football Hall of Fame and in 2005 he was elevated to Legend Status.
Reputation
Sheedy had a reputation as one of the toughest and most violent players in the WANFL, and was suspended numerous times.
Personal life
Sheedy worked as a clerk at the Fremantle Harbour Trust.