Gordon Charles Hocking (12 August 1919 – 24 March 1986) was an
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 who played for
Collingwood 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).
Football
Hocking was primarily a knock ruckman but could also play most positions around the ground. He made his debut at Collingwood in the
1938 VFL season
The 1938 VFL season was the 42nd season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 23 April until 24 September, and comprised an ...
and was a losing Grand Finalist in his first two seasons. In
1950
Events January
* January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed.
* January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 ...
he was appointed club captain and he remained in the role
the following year, leading Collingwood to a Preliminary Final which they lost to
Essendon Essendon may refer to:
Australia
*Essendon, Victoria
**Essendon railway station
**Essendon Airport
*Essendon Football Club, in the Australian Football League
*Electoral district of Essendon
*Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington
United Kin ...
by two points. Hocking was a regular interstate representative for
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India
* Victoria (state), a state of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital
* Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...
and starred at the
1950 Brisbane Carnival. That year he was named as a half back flanker in the ''Sporting Life'' Team of the Year.
Hocking retired during the
1952 VFL season
The 1952 VFL season was the 56th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 19 April until 27 September, and comprised a ...
, the last remaining pre-World War II VFL player.
[Piesse, p. 142.]
Military service
He served overseas with the Second AIF.
References
Sources
Bolfo, Tony, "200 Club push for 'Mulga', Baxter and Bob", ''Carlton Football Club'', 14 March 2017.* Holmesby, R. and Main, J. (2007) ''The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers'', 7th ed, Melbourne: Bas Publishing.
* Piesse, K. (2011) ''Great Australian Football Stories'', The File Mile Press: Scoresby, Victoria. .
World War Two Nominal Roll: Corporal Gordon Charles Hocking (VX82888), ''Department of Veterans' Affairs''.World War Two Service Record: Corporal Gordon Charles Hocking (VX82888), ''National Archives of Australia''.
External links
*
*
Gordon Hocking, at ''Collingwood Forever''.
1919 births
Australian rules footballers from Melbourne
Collingwood Football Club players
Chelsea Football Club (Australia) players
1986 deaths
Australian Army personnel of World War II
Australian Army soldiers
People from South Melbourne
Military personnel from Melbourne
20th-century Australian sportsmen
{{AFL-bio-1919-stub