On October 3 at the Copeland Trophy night held at the Crown Palladium, the fourth best and fairest Collingwood player will be awarded the Jock McHale Trophy.
The Collingwood Football Club’s existence pre-1950 was synonymous with one man who coached, captained and played for the club, J. F. ‘Jock’ McHale. The NSW-native is better remembered as a coaching legend chalking up 714 games and steering the side to a VFL-AFL record of eight premierships.
McHale’s playing days were also something to be admired. He made his debut as a 20-year-old in 1903, in round one’s clash against Carlton and starred in the half back position. McHale contributed 14 games in his first season mainly as a defender. He had a hand in 12 wins in his debut season and was unlucky to miss out playing in the 1903 premiership side after playing in the semi-final win the week before.
McHale, the player, was known for his durability and awareness, which contributed to his remarkable streak of playing 191 games in a row between 1906 and 1917. During that time McHale moved to the centre of the ground and was named in the side’s best in the 1910 premiership victory over Carlton.
McHale’s coaching journey began in 1912 where he acted as captain-coach for two years. In 1914 he was a playing coach up until Collingwood’s fifth premiership flag in 1917 (his final season as a player).
When McHale finally hung up his boots after 261 games, he had his eyes set solely on coaching. A coaching career that spanned 38 seasons, 714 games, 467 wins, 237 losses, 10 draws and eight premierships, McHale has firmly placed his mark in the history of the Magpies.
The Collingwood legend had his final hit-out for the Magpies in 1953 as a team selector. A few days after the Magpies won the ‘53 Flag, McHale collapsed from a heart attack and passed away a few days later.
The most successful coach in AFL-VFL history was inducted into the AFL Hall of Fame in 1996 and was elevated to legend status in 2005. Since 2001, the AFL premiership coach has been awarded the Jock McHale medal. The AFL has retrospectively given this award to each premiership coach since 1950, the year after McHale retired as a coach.
Information used to compile this article was sourced from “The Official Collingwood Illustrated Encyclopaedia” which can be purchased at the Collingwood Superstore.
