Reg Coyle
| Reg Coyle | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Reginald Francis Coyle | ||
| Date of birth | 1 October 1917 | ||
| Place of birth | South Melbourne, Victoria | ||
| Date of death | 26 April 1998 (aged 80) | ||
| Place of death | Heidelberg, Victoria | ||
| Original team(s) | South Melbourne City | ||
| Debut | 1937, South Melbourne vs. Carlton, at Lake Oval | ||
| Height | 173 cm (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Weight | 76 kg (168 lb) | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1937–1941 | South Melbourne (VFL) | 53 (1) | |
| 1945 | South Melbourne (VFL) | 9 (2) | |
| 1946 | Port Melbourne (VFA) | 3 (0) | |
|
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1946. | |||
| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Reginald Francis Coyle (1 October 1917 – 26 April 1998) was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL) in the 1930s and 1940s.
Family
[edit]The son of Reginald Charles Coyle (1889–1940),[1] and Ellen Cecilia Coyle (1885–1963), née Sullivan, Reginald Francis Coyle was born at South Melbourne, Victoria on 1 October 1917.
He married Annie Veronica Cawley (1918–1989) in 1940. They had six children.
Football
[edit]South Melbourne (VFL)
[edit]Coyle was recruited from the local club South Melbourne City (he had won the competition's beat and fairest award in 1936),[2] and made his VFL debut for South Melbourne against Carlton at the Lake Oval in Round 12 1937.[3]
A wingman, Coyle had played 53 senior games by the end of the 1941 season, and polled votes in the 1940 and 1941 Brownlow Medal counts.
Second AIF
[edit]He enlisted in the Second AIF in 1942,[4] and continued to play football with Army teams during his service.[5] In Queensland, in late June/early July, he was the vice-captain, and one of the team's best players, of a combined Army team (captain Charlie Van Der Bist) that beat a combined RAAF team (captain Allan La Fontaine) 17.14 (116) to 14.11 (95).[6]
South Melbourne (VFL)
[edit]On his discharge from the army (in 1945),[7] he played a further nine games in the 1945 season.
Port Melbourne (VFA)
[edit]He was cleared from South Melbourne to Port Melbourne in April 1946.[8][9]
Military service
[edit]He enlisted in the Second AIF on 18 July 1942, and had gained the rank of Corporal by the time of his discharge on 28 March 1945.[10]
Death
[edit]He died at Heidelberg, Victoria on 26 April 1998.[11]
Notes
[edit]- ^ Deaths: Coyle, The Argus, (Friday, 5 July 1940), p.4.
- ^ Association Men at South, The Argus, (Wednesday, 24 March 1937), p.12.
- ^ AFL Tables.
- ^ Taylor, Percy, "Sportsman turn to War, and — Are Proud of Their Uniform: 40 from North", The Australasian, (Saturday, 22 August 1942), p.14.
- ^ See, for example, Taylor, Percy, "They Work Hard, but Play when they Can: Sportsmen in the Greater Game of War", The Australasian, (Saturday, 26 September 1942), p.12, and de Lacy, H.A., "Football among Servicemen: Airmen Score in Lightning Title, The Sporting Globe, (Saturday, 2 October 1943), p.2.
- ^ Match report and team photographs at: Army beats Air Force in Northern Area, The Sporting Globe, (Saturday, 3 July 1943), p.2.
- ^ "Reg Coyle, who last played in 1941, and is now in the Army, has notified [South Melbourne] officials that he will be on leave shortly, and expected to play a few games": South Train Again, The Argus, (Thursday, 15 March 1945), p.13.
- ^ V.F.A. Gains Players: Four from South Melb., The Age, (Wednesday, 10 April 1946), p.7.
- ^ League Men Switch, The Age, (Saturday, 13 April 1946), p.10.
- ^ Nominal Roll.
- ^ Reginald Francis Coyle, at Find a Grave.
References
[edit]- World War Two Nominal Roll: Corporal Reginald Francis Coyle (VX88343), Department of Veterans' Affairs.
- A13860, VX88343: World War Two Service Record: Corporal Reginald Francis Coyle (VX88343), National Archives of Australia.
- B883, VX88343: World War Two Service Record: Corporal Reginald Francis Coyle (VX88343), National Archives of Australia.
External links
[edit]- Reg Coyle's playing statistics from AFL Tables
- Reg Coyle at AustralianFootball.com
- Reg Coyle, at The VFA Project