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HAS PLAYED HIS LAST GAME
'Bonny' Campbell's Brilliant Career
STRATEGIST AND GOAL-KICKING PRODIGY
No more will goal umpires wave the flags in token of another goal to
'Bonny' Campbell. The goal-getting marvel has definitely played his
last game. Many players have firmly resolved to retire, only to re-enter
the game, but the famous East Perth forward is determined that noth
ing will lure him back. Thus Western Australian football loses one of
its most brilliant exponents; a man who was essentially a goalsneak, and
who probably never had a peer in that capacity.
Old-timers may champion their fav
orities: followers of the present-day may
argue the relative merits of their choice
and Campbell, but the vast majority will
agree- that there was only one 'Bonnie'
Campbell, and brilliant forwards though
there may have bsen through the years,
none could claim greater achievements
than Campbell, who. tested tn the most
select company, pitted against the most
formidable opponents of his day, never
failed his club or his State. Could any
man have done better?
/
HIS BRILLIANT RECORD
Whether in League or interstate sphere
Campbell was always a remarkable
strategist. Natural ability and an in
clination to study and apply the finer
points of the game were combined in
him, and but for his magnificent per
formances the club, which he rendered
such fine service over many years, and
his State, the colors of which h« donned
so often, must have been satisfied with'
a- great deal less than the rewards that'
'BONNY' CAMPBELL Help
'BONNY' CAMPBELL
he helped so largely to bring their .way.
Two performances are outstanding ' in
Campbell's career as an interstate foot
baller. T When W.A. won its only carni
val in 1921 against S.A. the amazing
feat was performed of kicking eleven
goals straight before a behind was re
corded. Campbell got six of them, and
iii later stages df the match he added
substantially to his record.. In the 1924
carnival he again made history. In
five matches he scored 51 goals, a feai.
which may never be equalled. Even al
lowing that 23 of thim were kicked in
the match with Queensland, which was
little, more than a farce, and in which
he could have added to the number in
view of the fact that he played full for
ward for little more than half the game,
it was a sterling . performance,
he gained substantial figures against
the cracks of Victoria and South Aus
tralia as well; six. goals In one and srven
In the other. On almost : every occa
sion on which he has played for the
State Campbell has contributed in large
measure to its successes.
AN AUSTRALIAN RECORD
In club football Campbell's records
have been even more outstanding.. Four
times he' has headed the list of goal
kickers, namely, in 1922, 1924, 1926 and
1927. He did not play in 1923, the year
hs left South Fremantle to try 'his for-r
tune with East Perth. ' The latter team
had realised his greatness, and what
was Soiith's loss was East's profit, .in '.
1924 Jack Moriarity, of Fitzroy, estab
lished an Australian record with 82
goals in a season. In 1926 Campbell
had claimed that honor with a total ; of
89; 82 of which were secured in the
qualifying round. He «as not destined
to hold. the .record for long,, however, i
as the renowned Gordon Coventry, of
Collingwood, kicked 97 to Campbell's 87
in. 1927. Without in any way attempt
ing to belittle Coventry it must be ad
mitted that the smaller Victorian grounds
gave him a decided advantage, a.3 'the
big Victorian scores recorded each- week
will bear out. Allowing for the fact
that he did. not play -in 1923 Campbell
won the honors in club goal-Jkicking every
year but one, from 191:2 to 1927, and it
was Ted. Flemming *Tho beat him in
1925, with figures of 50 to 48 for the
first round. His 65 goals for the first
round in 1924 stood as a W.A. record
at that time, being aliead of the previous
beat claimed by Allan Evans and Alt
Halliday. Further back still Campbell
was well with the leaders. When he
topped the list in 1922 he was with
South Fremantle. Last season . he
missed several games, scoring 49 in the
qualifying series and adding twelve ir
the finals. It is not possible to give
the complete nurr|ber of goals Campbell
has secured since his entry to League
ranks, but the total must be stupendous.
His accuracy was uncanny, he was a
fine mark, smart in action generally,
and, above all, will rank as one of the
cleanest and most unselfish players the
game has known.
HIS EARLY DAYS
'Bonny' Campbell blossomed into pro
minence as a player with the old King
stons Ex-Scholars' team in North Fre
mantle in 1914, but in those days no one
dreamed he was to achieve greatness as
a goal-getter. The defensive game was
his forte at that time. One afternoon
in 1915 he played in a preliminary to
the big match for Kingstons. North
Fremantle were playing South Fremantle.
Coming off the field and preparing to ?
dress 'Bonny' was asked if he would gc
oh with North, who were a man short.
He accepted the offer only too willingly.
Thus ambitions were realised; he had
played his first game In senior company.
North disbanded that year and Sid Hux
ham, who will be well remembered among
the pre-war generation of followers, and
Campbell shifted to South Fremantle.
He joined that team in 1916, the year
the red and whites first won a premier
ship. ? ,
Up to thafc time 'Bonny' had; played
half-back consistently and, curiously
enough, it was a chance which put him
In front of goal for the first time. The
late Joe Coates, one-time captain and
staunch follower and officer of the club
in later years, was urging Campbell's
transference to full-forward, but Brank
Collins, the captain, afterwards League
umpire, had different idens, considering
Campbell was rightly placed and was
doing all right on the half-back line.
A kick in the an*1* '?d Campbell
for several weeks, but, south lost their
regular goalsneak and they asked him
If he felt equal to filling the 'mergency.
His ankle was rocky, but he agreed, and
thus played his first game in front, get
ting five or six goals. He was with
South up to 1922, being to that team
what Sol Lawn is today. an-3 captained
the side for a, period.
'Bonny' says that he owes his sue- i
cess to Joe Corkhill and 'Yank' Mad- }
den. two of the old North Fremantle
champions, whom he credits with having
laid the foundation on which he has
built his game. He also has the greatest
respect for the late Joe Coates. whose ad
vice was invaluable. He regarded- the
late Phil Matson, because of his un
eaualled experience and telling person
ality, as a master-mind in football. -
TRIBUTE TO FRANK GOLDING
The champion finds difficulty m
naming the greatest player he has met
!n opposing teams of his day, but is in
clined to award the distinction to Colin
Watson, the brilliant ex-St. Kilda centre
wing, who was a star of the 1924 car
nival. 'A man who would cover 100
yards hi 10i or 11 sec, pick up and dp
liver the ball without easing a fraction.'
was his description of Watson. In oii^
own State, in his time, he considers we
have never had better than S. B. Gra
venall and Jacky Jones. Dan Moriarty,
the erstwhile famous South Australian
half-back, also commands his anmira
tion.
Asked fo»- his opinion of the greatest
goalkeeper he had bsen opposed to, he
unnesltatingly selected Frank Goldlng,
who once played with. West Perth, and
afterwards won renown as a goal cus
todian for Sturt and , South Australia
Golding stood on his own. he declared,
bscause of h's wonderful judgment, and
because he always played the bail. 'Tr'«
goalkeeper y;,ho plays the man hasn't got
100 to 1 chance; but he who plavs.thp
hall, has the advantage of. the gfiaJ
sneak. The reasons ..are envious/1 is
Campbell's dictum.!, . ... :
ART OF ANTICIPATION
. 'If ra man wants to be a footballer f
said Campbell in reply to a question, 'it
is necessary, first and foremost, Ik.
should anticipate, and it particularly ap
plies to a goal-sneak. Anticipation ic
Ihc art of the gani'e. If you^havh't got
that asset you, will be of no account.
Without anticipatiori you. cannot . resort
to proper position play. With it, oi
course, goes understanding. . They are
practically identical. - If you- have team
understanding, especially among tlipj
men In the key positions, you must win |
matches. A common, mistake is to over
feed the forward. Where ano^her.player
has a reasonable' chance of goaling h- j
should exploit it; 'not' pass 'to the goal- j
sneak. Try anything. No .matter whos?
advice it is, it's. always worth' a trial.'./
??;.': DISLIKES NEW IIANDBALL
Mention in passing of the changes lu
the rules found Campbell opposed to the
new style of handball, which, he i 'con? j
tends, has had a more detrimental ef- i
feet than any other rule; It ; slowed tlir j
game considerably, ? Under the old con- j
ditions the player passing the ball could- j
receive and send ... on the ball with all
speed; .with the punch, the method was
slow and ungainly. -; ; He did not /think
the change of the boundary1 rule had
made such a , great deal, of . difference^ on .
the standard of play, and with . the hold
ing, laws it seemed to him that the, fault
lay. in. the; interpretation rather than w .
the rules themselves. .- ? ? .'??. ,
WHY HE RETIRED :
;. Why has 'Bonny' Campbell given the
game best? . In his last season he did not
equal his feats, of. previous years, but «'
would be idle to say. that he had. reached
the end of his tether. Undoubtedly one
or two reasons of liis own vitally affect
ing his outlook as a player have actu
ated him. in coming to the decision. He
has never sought the favors of umpires,
he will tell you, but just as firmly no
will; say that a player in his position .was
afforded -little, protection in the game to
day.^ He had often ' been accused ' of
'staging' free kicks, but that had never
been his practice. There was a distinc
tion between ?'staging' and th- art »'
playing for the ball in such a manner
that the opponent would be forced into
committing a breach of the. rules/ ' In
these circumstances it was the oppon
ent's own iookout. -That' he had done,
but never had he sought the favors of
umpire's.. ' . .. ?
Campbell recalled an incident of the
hnal match of trie 1921 carnival; . He
had been accused of having got -severiil
of his goals as the result of 'staged
frees.' Nothing of the kind. One of the
men playing on him that day was puz
zled early in the game by a certain
ruling of . the local umpire. . Campb-U
had explained the position, to the South
Australian's surprise and gratitude. 'If
that's so,' he told Campbell, 'thatfellcw
there . (pointing to another member.; of
his side, who was playing back) will give'
away a thousand free kicks.' Campbell
asked why. 'Because he's unconscious
on the field,' came the reply. Trie
player indicated, and Campbell clashed
frequently thereafter, and, true to. his
colleague's prediction, Campbell's rival
was . so reckless that he was penalised
times put. of number. Those were the
frees which to some extent enabled
Campbell to play such a : conspicuous
part as goal-kicker In : Western Aus
tralia's first' and only carnival success.
The game will see no more of Camp
bell. Its legion of followers will keenly
miss his brilliant feats and his tho
loughly sportsmanlike tactics.
In opening the new nurses' .home ' at
Middlesex Hospital, built with the help
of £200,000 given by an unknown man,
the Queen placed under the foundation
stone a glass vessel containing an en
velope with the unknown -name inside
It,- - '? ????;??-' ?;?-?;?- -.'?_; ^ .' :
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