Alan David Hickinbotham AM (9 December 1925 – 25 May 2010) was an Australian businessman and

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...

player and coach.

Biography

Hickinbotham was born on 9 December 1925 in

Geelong, Victoria Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...

. During 1944 and 1945 he served in the

Royal Australian Air Force The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal Air force, aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the Governor-Gener ...

as a gunner. In 1948 he graduated from the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. Its main campus in the Adelaide city centre includes many Sa ...

with a Bachelor of Science and Diploma of Education. From 1949 to 1951 he taught science and mathematics at

Geelong Grammar Geelong Grammar School is a private Anglican co-educational boarding and day school. The school's main campus is located in Corio on the northern outskirts of Geelong, Victoria, Australia, overlooking Corio Bay and Limeburners Bay. Establish ...

. Hickinbotham founded the Hickinbotham Group of Companies in 1954, which became one of Australia's largest building companies, developing over 50 community estates in

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

. He was an influential member of the Housing Industry Association SA and worked to sponsor skilled migrants from Britain to settle in Adelaide. He also had an interest in wineries in South Australia. He was appointed a Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

for "services to housing and urban development" in 1998. A scholarship at St Columba College in Adelaide is named in honour.

Football

Before his business career, Hickinbotham played with

South Adelaide Football Club The South Adelaide Football Club, nicknamed the Panthers, is an Australian rules football club based in the Adelaide suburb of Noarlunga Downs, South Australia, Noarlunga Downs. The club competes in the South Australian National Football Leagu ...

and won their best and fairest award in 1947, before playing six matches as a key defender for

Geelong Football Club The Geelong Football Club, nicknamed the Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club based at Kardinia Park in South Geelong, Victoria, Australia. The club competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier comp ...

. He later captain-coached

in 1954 and was club President between 1965 and 1982. He retained ties with the club until his death. Hickinbotham was captain-coach of Irymple Football Club in the

Sunraysia Football League The Sunraysia Football and Netball League, also known simply as the SFNL is an Australian rules league in the Sunraysia district of north-west Victoria (Australia), Victoria and south-west New South Wales. History Australian Rules football ...

in 1952 (runners up) and 1953 (3rd), before returning to Adelaide. In 2005 South Adelaide renamed their home ground

Hickinbotham Oval Magain Stadium (previously known as Flinders University Stadium, Hickinbotham Oval, and originally Noarlunga Oval) is an Australian rules football stadium in Noarlunga Downs, an outer-southern suburb of Adelaide. It has been the home of Sout ...

, (formerly Noarlunga Oval), in his honour. He played four representative games for

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

. In the early 1970s, Hickinbotham was part of a committee that drove the development of

Football Park Football Park, known commercially as AAMI Stadium, was an Australian rules football stadium located in West Lakes, a western suburb of Adelaide, the state capital of South Australia, Australia. It was built in 1973 by the South Australian N ...

, a dedicated Australian rules football ground for major matches in Adelaide.

Politics

He unsuccessfully stood as a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

candidate for the

Division of Hawker The Division of Hawker was an Divisions of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian Electoral Division in South Australia. The division was created in 1969 and abolished in 1993. It was named for Charles Hawker, who was a federal MP ...

in the 1969 Federal election.

Death

Hickinbotham died in May 2010 after a long illness, aged 84.

References

External links

The Family Way
– Hickinbotham Group * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hickinbotham, Alan 1925 births 2010 deaths Businesspeople from Adelaide Australian rules footballers from Adelaide Geelong Football Club players South Adelaide Football Club players South Adelaide Football Club coaches Members of the Order of Australia Australian businesspeople Royal Australian Air Force personnel of World War II