Brian Wilson (born 30 September 1961) is a former

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 ...

er in the

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football competition in Australia operated by the Australian Football League (AFL) as a second-tier, regional, semi-professional competition. It includes teams from clubs based in east ...

(VFL). Early in his career, he played in the

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

and later became a

forward pocket In the sport of Australian rules football, each of the eighteen players in a team is assigned to a particular named position on the field of play. These positions describe both the player's main role and by implication their location on the gro ...

. At Melbourne he developed into an aggressive player, winning possessions in packs and showed great handballing skills. Believed to be the only player to have won a

Brownlow Medal The Charles Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal (and informally as Charlie), is awarded to the best and fairest player in the Australian Football League (AFL) during the home-and-away season, as determined by votes cast by the f ...

at his third club. At 20 years of age, he was also the youngest winner since

Bob Skilton Robert John Skilton (born 8 November 1938) is a former Australian rules footballer who represented in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Playing as a rover, Skilton is one of only four players to have won the Brownlow Medal three times— ...

in 1959.

Playing career

From the suburb of Braybrook in Melbourne, Wilson began his VFL career with the

Footscray Football Club The Western Bulldogs are a professional Australian rules football club based in the Melbourne suburb of Footscray. The club competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier competition. Originally named the Footscray F ...

in 1978, playing four matches, after being recruited from the Braybrook Football Club. Following the

1979 VFL season The 1979 VFL season was the 83rd season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 31 March until 29 September, and comprised a ...

, Wilson transferred to , playing two seasons with the Kangaroos before moving to ahead of the

1982 VFL season __NOTOC__ Year 198 (CXCVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sergius and Gallus (or, less frequently, year 951 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 198 fo ...

. Wilson would play nine seasons with Melbourne, playing for the club in the 1988 VFL grand final loss against . He would transfer to ahead of the

1991 AFL season The 1991 AFL season was the 95th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), which was known previously as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season ran from 22 March until 28 September, and comprised a 22-game home-and-away sea ...

, before retiring at just 29 years of age at the end of the season, opting to pursue business interests. He would also be involved in the

Heidelberg Football Club The Heidelberg Football Club is an Australian rules football club in Heidelberg, Victoria, currently competing in the Northern Football League (Australia), Northern Football League. The club also has a junior side, known as the Heidelberg Junior ...

where he had served as a coach and president.

Brownlow Medal

Wilson was a surprise winner of the 1982 Brownlow Medal as the VFL's best and fairest player for the

, winning the award at just 20 years old, days before his 21st birthday. He polled 23 votes, five clear of 's Ross Glendinning and six votes ahead of duo

Leigh Matthews Leigh Raymond Matthews (born 1 March 1952) is a former Australian rules footballer and coach. He played for Hawthorn Football Club, Hawthorn in the Victorian Football League (1897–1989), Victorian Football League (VFL) and coached and the ...

and

Terry Wallace Terry Wallace (born 13 December 1958) is a former professional Australian rules football player and coach. As a player, his career spanned three VFL/AFL clubs; most notably Hawthorn where he played in three premierships. After one season with ...

. In the seasons following his medal win, Wilson struggled with the attention of being a Brownlow medallist, but was able to regain his form in the late 1980s. Wilson revealed in 2018 that he had lost the medal, but that it was returned to him via the

Melbourne Football Club The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed the Demons or colloquially the Dees, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier comp ...

in 2023.

Personal life

Wilson is married and has two daughters.

External links

Biography at the Melbourne Football Club website
*

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Brian 1961 births Living people Western Bulldogs players Melbourne Football Club players North Melbourne Football Club players St Kilda Football Club players Brownlow Medal winners Australian rules footballers from Victoria (state) Braybrook Football Club players Victorian State of Origin players