Research Missing DOD or DOB for League players (AFL)

[RedmanWasHere]

Correct, still boggles my mind that he debuted over a year before the start of WWII.

Same with me.

Makes you wonder the historical moments in VFL/AFL history in his lifetime.

First, he was 6 years old in Footscray, Hawthorn and North Melbourne's first VFL/AFL season.
He was 12 years old when Tommy Hafey was born and 17 when Barass was born.

He was 51 years old when Jezza took his famous mark.
TV was introduced to Aussie households in his 37th year.
Colour TV was introduced in his 56th year meaning his 'Scray boys got to see the vibrancy of the guernsey on TV.
63 year old Miller saw the shift from South Melbourne to Sydney.
72 year old Miller saw the Crows enter the league.
76 year old Miller saw the death and funeral of EJ Whitten.
80 year old Miller saw the MCG scoreboard catch fire.
He was 92 and 93 respectively when Gold Coast and GWS entered the league.
104 when Tassie were announced as the league's 19th team.

When he was a kid, Sir Kenneth Luke must've been in the early stages of his footy admin career.

 

[Oliver G]

 

[Catsace]

Astounding longevity. He's actually old enough to be the father of people like Bob Skilton or Kevin Murray!

 

[Bandit55]

Carlton's James Lawrence 'Jim' Carroll passed away on 4 May 2020:

https://funeralsofwaggawagga.com.au/ser/james-lawrence-carroll-jim

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/219912855/james_lawrence-carroll

Cousin of 'Turkey' Tom and Laurie Carroll:

https://www.blueseum.org/Jim+Carroll

 

[ThePope]

Got a questionable one here:
Collingwood and Preston's Denis Dalton is listed as later becoming a Commonwealth Games medal winning lawn bowler. That bowler died in 2018, but according to the obituary, has a different DOB and is from Maitland/ Hunter Valley, not Melbourne.

So are there actually 2 Denis Daltons or did we miss a death and get the DOB wrong?

 

[GreyCrow]

Got a questionable one here:
Collingwood and Preston's Denis Dalton is listed as later becoming a Commonwealth Games medal winning lawn bowler. That bowler died in 2018, but according to the obituary, has a different DOB and is from Maitland/ Hunter Valley, not Melbourne.

So are there actually 2 Denis Daltons or did we miss a death and get the DOB wrong?

My initial look says 2

Lawn bowls Denis is from NSW

The best news for the ACT came in
the singles defeats of GeofT Oakley
(Western Australia) and Denis Dalton (Victoria)

 

[35Daicos]

Got a questionable one here:
Collingwood and Preston's Denis Dalton is listed as later becoming a Commonwealth Games medal winning lawn bowler. That bowler died in 2018, but according to the obituary, has a different DOB and is from Maitland/ Hunter Valley, not Melbourne.

So are there actually 2 Denis Daltons or did we miss a death and get the DOB wrong?

The wife of the Collingwood player died in 2022 (he was still going at the time): https://ourladyofpentecost.org.au/blog/life-is-changed-not-ended-24/

This story certainly has it that the lawn bowls star was also the Collingwood footballer, but it looks certain that isn't correct!: https://commonwealthgames.com.au/co...alumni-honoured-at-hall-of-fame-awards-night/

That photo is of Denis Michael Dalton and his brother Frank. The lawn bowls man was from Warrnambool originally, it seems.

This tells his story quite well: https://www.standard.net.au/story/721195/clubs-growth-stuns-dalton-aussie-champ-returns-home/

This is the Collingwood footballer (Denis Francis), living with his wife at Templestowe in 1977:

 

[35Daicos]

Got a questionable one here:
Collingwood and Preston's Denis Dalton is listed as later becoming a Commonwealth Games medal winning lawn bowler. That bowler died in 2018, but according to the obituary, has a different DOB and is from Maitland/ Hunter Valley, not Melbourne.

So are there actually 2 Denis Daltons or did we miss a death and get the DOB wrong?

That's a very good 'pick-up'. It seems somebody got that story wrong many years ago, and it's still wrong with many sources, but it's definitely two people, and the Collingwood player was not the lawn bowls player!

 

[GreyCrow]

That's a very good 'pick-up'. It seems somebody got that story wrong many years ago, and it's still wrong with many sources, but it's definitely two people, and the Collingwood player was not the lawn bowls player!

Commonwealth Games site has a birth in 1941 and the following 2018 death

Denis Michael Dalton Results | Commonwealth Games Australia

Discover Denis Michael Dalton historical results with Team Australia at the past Commonwealth Games. Find out more at Commonwealth Games Australia.

commonwealthgames.com.au

 

[GreyCrow]

Thought we had a doppelganger but just a weird weird coincidence

Did a search and found an obit for a Denis Francis Dalton in Nelson NZ ( same name) died on June 5 2018 ( same date as Denis Michael )

Further searching revealed this Denis was born in 1937 - phew

But I did do a double take

 

[ThePope]

Thanks everyone. That's some amazing coincidences.

I bet the Kiwi Denis was a Rugby player who switched to 10 pin bowling!

I've split up the Wikipedia articles into separate Denises, can someone please get the Collingwood Forever bio to remove the bowls but.

 

[35Daicos]

Thanks everyone. That's some amazing coincidences.

I bet the Kiwi Denis was a Rugby player who switched to 10 pin bowling!

I've split up the Wikipedia articles into separate Denises, can someone please get the Collingwood Forever bio to remove the bowls but.

Great work in fixing that up on Wikipedia, and I have passed on the story to the Collingwood folks, so hopefully that bio will be altered shortly.

The words in Denis' Collingwood Forever bio came straight from an older edition of The Encyclopedia, while the most recent edition of the book has removed the bowls reference.

Edit (that just happened!): https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/denis-dalton

 

[35Daicos]

The DOB for Kevin Healy has been altered on the Collingwood Forever site, after the club was notified by a close family member that the game's records had an incorrect date: https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/kevin-healy

Oliver G
*Paul*

I've made the change here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Healy_(footballer)

 

[stemline]

Apologies if this has already been noted here but I only just saw someone had updated George Barton (Haw 1956) on wiki about a year ago - apparently he passed from cancer at just 42 in 1977.

DOD 5/5/1977

Also Wiki has a date of death for Charles Abbott (Haw 1961-63), another passing I wasn't aware of.

DOD 5/1/2025