Resource List thread - Inaccuracy in official records

[35Daicos]

The Carlton website yesterday had a new article added to it:
http://www.carltonfc.com.au/news/2016-06-02/the-curious-case-of-bill-ahern

Relates to the birthdate originally listed in his profile being inaccurate, and the quest to now locate the correct information.

This is mentioned in the article:- One possible lead relates to a William Ahern recorded in the Christmas Day 1886 edition of The Argus as having won a silver medal in Mr. Welch’s matriculation class at the local Carlton School.

In The Age, 22 December 1888 William Ahern gets a mention for earning a prize at what must be the same Carlton school (No. 112):- http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/193394899

It surely can't be the same William Ahern who was in the matriculation class two years earlier, presumably it's another person with the same name? Of course there's only some chance that the future Carlton player went to that school, but I think it's well worth pointing this out anyway.

Also here for having obtained an exhibition:- http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/209212967 (13 Feb. 1888)

 

[35Daicos]

What about players under assumed names. How did we arrive at the players who were officially credited with the game?

For instance in its report on the Round 1, 1897 Melbourne vs South Melbourne game the Emerald Hill Record gives a team lineup (http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/108482390) that leaves out Melbourne's full-forward line. This means four players are not included - Bill McCulloch, George Johnstone, Edwin Jenkyn and Charlie Young - but a "Williams" is named in the followers in quotation marks.

'Williams' is also shown as playing the next week but George Johnsone wasn't in the side so it has to be one of the other three, and as Charlie Young seems to have been a centreman rather than a 'follower' that narrows it down to McCulloch or Jenkyn - and it seems from an article later in the year that it was McCulloch as it mentions that he played under an assumed name earlier that year (http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/139742813).

The question is - why was he playing under an assumed name? The Australasian doesn't suggest anything dodgy was up. Not sure why they would have had to get into subterfuge given that he had already played with the club in 1895 and 1896.

The Sportsman says (of the rd. 1 1897 game) "Melbourne attacked smartly, and Williams---an assumed name---went near putting the ball between the posts."

The reporter didn't think much of George Johnstone's first game, stating "Johnstone might have been a star at Corranderrk, but the light had gone out of the star on Saturday."

http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/23311779

I was hoping this paper (now on Trove) may have provided the answer to the mystery of whether or not Melbourne's George Johnstone was an aboriginal, but haven't found anything at all. There's no mention of him at all (that I can spot) regarding any of the other games he played in 1897-98.

 

[GreyCrow]

I was hoping this paper (now on Trove) may have provided the answer to the mystery of whether or not Melbourne's George Johnstone was an aboriginal, but haven't found anything at all. There's no mention of him at all (that I can spot) regarding any of the other games he played in 1897-98.

You may have already seen this. Yarra Glen v Coranderrk 7 August 1896

G Johnston named as Captain and gets a good write up. Fortunately ( or unfortunately) the writer kept his views to himself and there is no indication of race in any of the article. Though looking through Mr Google and Trove searching on Coranderrk it is stated often that Coranderrk was established as an Aboriginal Protectorate station. This will also include those who look after the station from the Civil Service etc.So no real clue there but the odds would be high.

Have you got a proposed birth year? Or death?

 

[35Daicos]

You may have already seen this. Yarra Glen v Coranderrk 7 August 1896

G Johnston named as Captain and gets a good write up. Fortunately ( or unfortunately) the writer kept his views to himself and there is no indication of race in any of the article. Though looking through Mr Google and Trove searching on Coranderrk it is stated often that Coranderrk was established as an Aboriginal Protectorate station. This will also include those who look after the station from the Civil Service etc.So no real clue there but the odds would be high.

Have you got a proposed birth year? Or death?

Thanks a lot for that. I'm not sure whether I've seen that article or not, I have read a few from that paper. The suggestion that George Johnstone may have been an aboriginal (and therefore the first in the league's history) was made in another thread by
Supermercado who noticed that he was referred to as the Captain of the Coranderrk (when playing for Melbourne). It would be quite a decent story if it was proven that Johnstone was indigenous and had played in round 1 1897.

Born
4 November 1869
Died
9 November 1956 (aged 87)

http://australianfootball.com/players/player/George+Johnstone/1027
http://afltables.com/afl/stats/players/G/George_Johnstone.html

 

[GreyCrow]

Thanks a lot for that. I'm not sure whether I've seen that article or not, I have read a few from that paper. The suggestion that George Johnstone may have been an aboriginal (and therefore the first in the league's history) was made in another thread by
Supermercado who noticed that he was referred to as the Captain of the Coranderrk (when playing for Melbourne). It would be quite a decent story if it was proven that Johnstone was indigenous and had played in round 1 1897.

Born
4 November 1869
Died
9 November 1956 (aged 87)

http://australianfootball.com/players/player/George+Johnstone/1027
http://afltables.com/afl/stats/players/G/George_Johnstone.html

Based on those birth and death dates Vic BDM have birth and death of a George Johnstone born Ceres 1869 to an Alexander and Elizabeth ( Hunter) and a death of a George Johnston son of Alexander mother unknown in Gnarwarre , Which google assures me is near Geelong along with Ceres. The dropping of the E is neither here nor there for me. Location and father fits. The question is am I looking at the same person and how does that then fit in with a move to Coranderrk. I will keep looking

 

[ThePope]

How certain is everyone of the status of the historical Geelong list of players? Cameron Mooney has 971 tattooed on his arm. AFL Tables has him as player 970. Wikipedia had him at 969, before the 2 Jack Ross's were separated.

Oops.
Is this a candidate for numerology, turn it up or Maccas Little Losses?

 

[35Daicos]

How certain is everyone of the status of the historical Geelong list of players? Cameron Mooney has 971 tattooed on his arm. AFL Tables has him as player 970. Wikipedia had him at 969, before the 2 Jack Ross's were separated.View attachment 263281 View attachment 263282

Oops.
Is this a candidate for numerology, turn it up or Mackers Little Losses?

There's also the Con Ryan/Henry Molan story:- http://www.geelongcats.com.au/news/2015-03-27/the-cat-of-two-names

The ad featured a list of names, including Henry Molan and Con Ryan. The club's records stated that Molan had played five games for the Cats in 1904, while Ryan had worn the navy blue and white hoops on four occasions in 1907 and '08.

The man in question's real name was Cornelius Francis Molan. He was born in October 1886 and was known as Con. Having become a local footballer of note while growing up in Colac, he was then recruited by the nearby Geelong footy club. Molan made his VFL debut for the Pivotonians, as Geelong was then known, against Essendon at the Corio Oval on May 14, 1904. But after playing just five games he headed back to Colac.

Molan returned to the city of Geelong in 1907 and played footy with a local club. According to Molan family folklore, he was having a kick-to-kick in a paddock with a workmate when some strangers approached him.
But when he returned to the Geelong Football Club he decided to stick with the made up surname he had given the recruiting scout. So he recommenced his career as Con Ryan rather than Con Molan.

With the mysteries solved, Hutchinson is in the process of amending the club's records to show that a bloke by the name of Cornelius Francis 'Con' Molan played nine games in the hoops between 1904 and 1908. The name Con Ryan will become a footnote in Geelong's 156-year history.

http://afltables.com/afl/changes.html
April, 2015
6th: Henry Molan -> Con Molan, Con Ryan -> also Con Molan

Incredibly, the Geelong website still hasn't made the changes for Molan/Ryan or added the other Jack Ross:-
http://www.geelongcats.com.au/club/history/every-player/i-q
Player Debut Round GFC Career Span MTCHS GLS Selection Order
Henry Molan 1904 2 1904 5 0 109

http://www.geelongcats.com.au/club/history/every-player/r-z
Player Debut Round GFC Career Span MTCHS GLS Selection Order
Con Ryan 1907 15 1907-08 4 1 168
Jack W. Ross 1919 6 1919-22 35 1 264

Edit:- I didn't think the numbers added up despite all that!

I posted this in Stats Questions a couple of years ago (SJ said "I thought Ottens was 1000th for Geelong."):- No doubt he was, but when Tom Smith was removed from the list about a year ago that would have changed. Tom was originally thought to have played 6 games in 1919, but it was found those games belonged to Herbie Smith, whose tally went from 32 to 38.

There were posts in here about this topic last year sometime (pages 114/115).

I do find it surprising that the list of past players on the Geelong FC website was never updated after this revelation. I'd have thought Col Hutchinson would have notified the club.

The latest (2014) edition of The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers has removed Tom Smith and altered the record of Herbie Smith. Footy Works recently made the same changes.

https://www.bigfooty.com/forum/threads/stats-questions.982511/page-141#post-33319073

The Geelong website hasn't changed this yet either!!:- http://www.geelongcats.com.au/club/history/every-player/r-z
Player Debut Round GFC Career Span MTCHS GLS Selection Order
Herbie Smith 1920 2 1920-21 32 0 271
Tommy Smith 1919 9 1919 6 0 268

 

[35Daicos]

Many sources have the attendance for this year's Round 4 Hawthorn vs St Kilda clash at York Park (Aurora Stadium) at 15,173 but it does seem to have been officially altered to 17,052:- http://www.examiner.com.au/story/3862444/launcestons-afl-crowd-figure-raised/

THE crowd figure for Saturday’s AFL match in Launceston has been amended to 17,052.

The clash between Hawthorn and St Kilda attracted a strong turnout to Aurora Stadium and suspicions were swiftly raised when the gate was officially recorded as 15,173.

AFL Tables and Footystats have the amended figure:- http://afltables.com/afl/seas/2016.html#4 || http://footystats.freeservers.com/Archive/Review16-R04.html

Many other sources are still showing the attendance as 15,173:-
http://www.afl.com.au/match-centre/2016/4/haw-v-stk
http://australianfootball.com/seasons/season/afl/138/premiership+season/1/1/2016#round-4 ( australianfootball )
http://www.users.on.net/~rogersresults/Rogers_Results/Rounds/2016/2016_r4_review.htm#match3 ( RogersResults )
http://www.footywire.com/afl/footy/ft_match_list

I cannot see anything on the AFL website that mentions this, but it does look likely that the original figure was officially amended.

Edit:- I've just noticed that this was in the Round 6 Football Record (page 50):-
Tassie crowd figure changed
• The crowd figure for the round four match between Hawthorn and St Kilda in Launceston has been amended by almost 2000. Originally, the figure had been recorded as 15,173, but the official figure is 17,052. Aurora Stadium manager Robert Groenewegen told The Examiner there had been an issue with
ticket scanning. “We have analysed all the ticketing data in relation to the match with the official attendance now recorded as 17,052. We have identified the technical issue which will be corrected for future events,” he said.

 

[ThePope]

Ken/Kenneth or Keith McNaughton? Single game for South Melb in final round of 1940. AFL Tables/Aust Football and hence Wikipedia have Keith, but Trove from the day and Sydney Swans have Ken/Kenneth. No date of death either, so could still be alive in his 90s. Surprisingly for a single game player, there is a photo in Trove from the Australasian. Being a 20 year old during the war, I checked the military enrollments, but he didn't seem to have enrolled.

 

[GreyCrow]

Searching Keith McNaughton on Trove brings up this article. This article suggests he was born 1921/22. Starred as a 15 yr old in Sydney


There is a picture as well. Maybe try and match it to the other. The only Keith McNaughton I could find in Vic BDM is a Keith Duncan McNaughton born 1913

Odds on its Keith not Kenneth

 

[WhiteHartLane23]

“Gerald Johnston” is recorded as having played 11 games for University in 1914. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Johnston)

There is only one Gerald Johnston in Victorian BDM records and his records match the dates of birth/death in official AFL records.
year reg_number gender surname first names father mother birth_loc
1891 22562 M Johnston Gerald Aloystious Charles Doyle Mary Essendon
year reg_number gender surname first names father mother death_loc age
1969 01128 Johnston Gerald Aloysius Charles Doyle Mary Surr 77

As per these records, his full name was Gerald Aloysius Johnston.

Contemporary newspaper reports, however, do not match this name – it seems highly unlikely that Gerald Aloysius Johnston was this player.

Referred to as C. M. Johnston: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article7256126
Referred to as G. M. Johnston: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1515124; http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article155521810

So who was this player?
Known facts:

• Attended Melbourne University in 1914
• Enlisted in AIF prior to April 1915
• Surname most commonly spelled as “Johnston” but sometimes “Johnson” (e.g. http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/119300)

My current guess is:
Charles Melbourne Johnston
http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/johnston-charles-melbourne-6859
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article138713602

Thoughts, suggestions welcome!!!

 

[the croucher]

“Gerald Johnston” is recorded as having played 11 games for University in 1914. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Johnston)

There is only one Gerald Johnston in Victorian BDM records and his records match the dates of birth/death in official AFL records.
year reg_number gender surname first names father mother birth_loc
1891 22562 M Johnston Gerald Aloystious Charles Doyle Mary Essendon
year reg_number gender surname first names father mother death_loc age
1969 01128 Johnston Gerald Aloysius Charles Doyle Mary Surr 77

As per these records, his full name was Gerald Aloysius Johnston.

Contemporary newspaper reports, however, do not match this name – it seems highly unlikely that Gerald Aloysius Johnston was this player.

Referred to as C. M. Johnston: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article7256126
Referred to as G. M. Johnston: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1515124; http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article155521810

So who was this player?
Known facts:

• Attended Melbourne University in 1914
• Enlisted in AIF prior to April 1915
• Surname most commonly spelled as “Johnston” but sometimes “Johnson” (e.g. http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/119300)

My current guess is:
Charles Melbourne Johnston
http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/johnston-charles-melbourne-6859
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article138713602

Thoughts, suggestions welcome!!!

I agree with you - seems Charles Melbourne Johnston is likely to be the player (he was a lawyer).

Gerald Aloysius Johnston is listed in 1920s electoral rolls in the Maribyrnong electorate with an occupation of warehouseman,
not as likely to be a University of Melbourne person.

 

[*Paul*]

Curiously our men Gerald and Charlie are both absent from the Football Record team lists rds 6-8, when he/they should have been playing.

On closer inspection it seems the rd 7 edition was prepared for rd 8 as it followed only two days later. So 7 & 8 are the same, and only have 17 players for Uni.

 

[35Daicos]

“Gerald Johnston” is recorded as having played 11 games for University in 1914. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerald_Johnston)

My current guess is:
Charles Melbourne Johnston
http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/johnston-charles-melbourne-6859
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article138713602

Thoughts, suggestions welcome!!!

http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/189387855 (The Age, 26 March 1914)

"The two grammar school players Johnston and Langford may take on senior football." We know that Charles Melbourne Johnston "went to Melbourne Church of England Grammar School in 1907-11 and at the outbreak of war in 1914 was a law student." Would he be referred to in 1914 as a grammar school player if he had finished school in 1911?

Presumably it is Gerald Aloysius Johnston who the AFL have in the records, given that he was a warehouseman (as has been mentioned) it doesn't seem likely he would have played for University. That was his occupation when he joined the army (26/07/1915).
http://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=1829853

http://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=1829340 (Charles M Johnston dated 16/04/1915 - I'm not totally sure if that's when he joined the army, however, perhaps it was earlier?)

The article that you've provided a link to ( http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/155521810 ) is from 5 May 1915 (prior to the date when Gerald Aloysius Johnston joined up), and says G M Johnston was one of 12 University (League) players from 1914 who were at the front. That seems to indicate that G A Johnston couldn't possibly have been the footballer.

We can also see that Charles Melbourne Johnston was 5ft 9 1/2 and weighed 11 stone 8 lbs when he joined up. AFL Tables has the player as 177 cm which would be very close:- http://afltables.com/afl/stats/players/G/Gerald_Johnston.html

Gerald Johnston
Born:21-Jun-1891 (Debut:22y 343d Last:23y 70d)
Height:177 cm Weight:0 kg

177cm/75kg according to the AFL Historical Statistics website page for University 1914.

Edit:- I just noticed that Gerald Aloysius Johnston was also measured at 5ft 9 1/2 (and weighed 11 stone 10 lbs) when he signed up.

From the biography article on Charles Melbourne Johnston (link in earlier post) "After two previous commissions in the cadets he was again commissioned in December 1914 as a lieutenant in the Senior Cadets, 3rd Military District. He was seconded to the Australian Imperial Force on 16 April 1915 as a second lieutenant and that day embarked from Brisbane with the 5th Reinforcements for the 15th Battalion, reporting for duty at Gallipoli on 2 June."

So it looks as if he had left Australia in time to be the person referred to in the article on 5 May 1915, though he may not of reached the front by that time.

 

[35Daicos]

This article in The Winner (12 May 1915) names C. M. Johnston as a student from Melbourne Grammar School now serving at the front:-

http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/155529959

I don't think there's any doubt that he is the University footballer. The (similar) article/list that called him G M Johnston seemingly just got his name wrong.


Here he is pictured in 1911 for the MGS football team (3rd from right in middle row).:-



First XVIII Football Team Premiers
Back row (from left): N. Hall, W.J. Boake, L. Grieve, D.H. Lawrence, L. Frew, W.L. Heron, A. Adams and Mr. M. Wilson. Middle row: A.O. Foster, C.R. Campbell, N.L. Macintosh, L. De Grut, R.H. Watson (captain), L.R. Marks, C.M. Johnston, D.H. Bodycomb and J.C. Currie. Front row: F.O. McEvoy, N. Hemmons and J. Dale.

http://dbtw.mgs.vic.edu.au/dbtw-wpd/textbase/lodge archives/images/002052.jpg

Interestingly, two others from this photo (Wilfrid Heron and Les Marks) also represented University.

He's also in the 1910 team photo (as C. Johnson - far right back row).

http://dbtw.mgs.vic.edu.au/dbtw-wpd/textbase/lodge archives/images/002051.jpg

http://dbtw.mgs.vic.edu.au/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?AC=NEXT_BLOCK&XC=/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll&BU=http://dbtw.mgs.vic.edu.au/dbtw-wpd/textbase/Lodge_Archives.htm&TN=Melbourne+Grammar+Archives&SN=AUTO5487&SE=1203&RN=20&MR=20&TR=0&TX=1000&ES=0&CS=1&XP=&RF=searchresults1211&EF=web+report&DF=recordform1211&RL=0&EL=0&DL=0&NP=3&ID=&MF=&MQ=&TI=0&DT=&ST=0&IR=2037&NR=0&NB=1&SV=0&SS=1&BG=&FG=&QS=lodge_archives&OEX=ISO-8859-1&OEH=ISO-8859-1

 

[WhiteHartLane23]

This article in The Winner (12 May 1915) names C. M. Johnston as a student from Melbourne Grammar School now serving at the front:-http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/155529959

I don't think there is any real doubt that he is the University footballer. The (similar) article/list that called him G M Johnston seemingly just got his name wrong.

Thanks 35Daicos - I hoped you might unearth some more refs on this one and you have come through magnificently!

I've also emailed MGS archives to confirm if there are any other Johnstons from that era that might be candidates (mostly hoping they rule out any other options). I'll contact Stephen Rodgers from the AFL as well and start the process to get the official records changed as I think the evidence is pretty conclusive.

 

[35Daicos]

Thanks 35Daicos - I hoped you might unearth some more refs on this one and you have come through magnificently!

I've also emailed MGS archives to confirm if there are any other Johnstons from that era that might be candidates (mostly hoping they rule out any other options). I'll contact Stephen Rodgers from the AFL as well and start the process to get the official records changed as I think the evidence is pretty conclusive.

Thanks mate. Great effort from you to spot this one in the first place. I look forward to hearing what the AFL guys have to say, but it does now look clear cut enough.

 

[35Daicos]

Thanks 35Daicos - I hoped you might unearth some more refs on this one and you have come through magnificently!

I've also emailed MGS archives to confirm if there are any other Johnstons from that era that might be candidates (mostly hoping they rule out any other options). I'll contact Stephen Rodgers from the AFL as well and start the process to get the official records changed as I think the evidence is pretty conclusive.

There is J.C. Johnstone in the 1912 team photo. I think you've got the right one, however. In the same photo there's L. Langford, who is probably the Langford mentioned (along with Johnston) as the grammar school players in line to play for University.

Edit:- The same two are in the 1913 photo, J.C. Johnstone is the captain, which does make it slightly more interesting!

 

[35Daicos]

It looks very likely that Lester Kelly played in the 1914 Round 8 (King's Birthday Holiday Monday) game for University vs. Fitzroy, though he is not named in the official lineup:- http://afltables.com/afl/stats/games/1914/061719140608.html

He's mentioned in The Age:- http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/189418628/18557326 and The Argus:- http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/7270886/376636 match reports on Tuesday, 9 June 1914, also The Australasian the following Saturday:- http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/143324013

Kelly is meant to have played in rounds 7 & 9. I haven't looked far enough at this stage to have any idea as to whose spot he might have taken in the round 8 official lineup, assuming he actually did play.

Officially, he had a career record of 0 wins and 40 losses. According to a couple of sources I've seen, he holds the VFL/AFL record for most career games played without (ever) recording a win. (If correct) it would be somewhat ironic if another game was added to that sorry statistic!!

 

[*Paul*]

The Football Record has him playing in rd 8, but not much use really as they have appeared to complied those lineups prior to the rd 7 games.

 

[35Daicos]

The Football Record has him playing in rd 8, but not much use really as they have appeared to complied those lineups prior to the rd 7 games.

Yes, I did check the Football Record and saw that he was named in the lineup, but as you've suggested that didn't really mean a lot in this case. I'll try to find something in another paper or two, with three 'main' papers naming him as having played it looks totally likely that he did, but I still need to find someone to come out of the official side, of course.

 

[the croucher]

This article in The Winner (12 May 1915) names C. M. Johnston as a student from Melbourne Grammar School now serving at the front:-

http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/155529959

I don't think there's any doubt that he is the University footballer. The (similar) article/list that called him G M Johnston seemingly just got his name wrong.


Here he is pictured in 1911 for the MGS football team (3rd from right in middle row).:-

View attachment 273591

First XVIII Football Team Premiers
Back row (from left): N. Hall, W.J. Boake, L. Grieve, D.H. Lawrence, L. Frew, W.L. Heron, A. Adams and Mr. M. Wilson. Middle row: A.O. Foster, C.R. Campbell, N.L. Macintosh, L. De Grut, R.H. Watson (captain), L.R. Marks, C.M. Johnston, D.H. Bodycomb and J.C. Currie. Front row: F.O. McEvoy, N. Hemmons and J. Dale.

http://dbtw.mgs.vic.edu.au/dbtw-wpd/textbase/lodge archives/images/002052.jpg

Interestingly, two others from this photo (Wilfrid Heron and Les Marks) also represented University.

He's also in the 1910 team photo (as C. Johnson - far right back row).

http://dbtw.mgs.vic.edu.au/dbtw-wpd/textbase/lodge archives/images/002051.jpg

http://dbtw.mgs.vic.edu.au/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll?AC=NEXT_BLOCK&XC=/dbtw-wpd/exec/dbtwpub.dll&BU=http://dbtw.mgs.vic.edu.au/dbtw-wpd/textbase/Lodge_Archives.htm&TN=Melbourne+Grammar+Archives&SN=AUTO5487&SE=1203&RN=20&MR=20&TR=0&TX=1000&ES=0&CS=1&XP=&RF=searchresults1211&EF=web+report&DF=recordform1211&RL=0&EL=0&DL=0&NP=3&ID=&MF=&MQ=&TI=0&DT=&ST=0&IR=2037&NR=0&NB=1&SV=0&SS=1&BG=&FG=&QS=lodge_archives&OEX=ISO-8859-1&OEH=ISO-8859-1

Here is link to a photo which the Aust War Memorial have identified as G A Johnston:
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/DA10100/

Doesn't look at all like C M Johnston !

…but this group of officers has a CM Johnston identified (2nd from left - front row)
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/E01729/

and he does look like the player in the Melb Grammar team group.
More evidence I reckon that CM Johnston is the VFL player and not GA.

 

[35Daicos]

Here is link to a photo which the Aust War Memorial have identified as G A Johnston:
https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/DA10100/

Doesn't look at all like C M Johnston !

Yikes! No it doesn't.

 

[GreyCrow]

If you are chasing Lester Kelly it seems he could also be Lester H Kelly High Jump champ and would have been a teacher at the time

He is mentioned in this article as Athlete and footballer playing for Varsity . In an interesting twist this article shows how confusing it may be. Players Lester and Kelly are named together creating the quick impression of a Lester Kelly. But it states a Kelly played on June 13 v St Kilda

This article confirms Lester H Kelly is one and the same as the University footballer.

 

[35Daicos]

The article in Punch (18 June 1914) you've provided a link to, in referring to the round 9 clash versus St Kilda, suggests Kelly had returned to the side for that game. This must cast some doubt on the matter, so I'm hoping it's a mistake in that paper, as The Age, The Argus and The Australasian all had him as playing in the round 8 game (even though the official records have him as an absentee).

The following Friday's Argus says "University hope, now that the sports and the boat race are over, to have a full side. They expect Doubleday, Kelly, and Woods to be in the team against St. Kilda, but Brake will not be playing." Yet the match report in the Monday paper mentions two ins and outs without naming Kelly as one of those returning for the rd. 9 game:- "In the absence of West, Park led the students, who were also without Brake, the vacancies being filled by Cameron (captain of University's seconds) and Johnson." Johnston was meant to be in the rd. 8 side, so his being named as an inclusion (for rd. 9) only adds to the confusion!! Could it be that Kelly was in the rd. 8 team with Johnston the player dropping out of the official lineup, or did Kelly simply not play in the game?

Neither of The Age or The Australasian gives anything away a week later in terms of changes for rounds 8 and 9.