John Coleman (Australian Footballer) - A Strange Coincidence

A Strange Coincidence

Coleman's retaliation against an entirely unprovoked assault on his boil-infested neck by an opposition back-man who was not the full-back (his direct opponent), in an away game, in front of a hostile crowd, and his subsequent suspension from the 1951 final series — his only suspension in his VFL career — reminded many of an incident fifteen years earlier.

In round 13 of 1936, Collingwood were playing against Richmond at the Punt Road Oval, Richmond's home ground, Collingwood's champion full-forward and veteran of seventeen VFL seasons, Gordon Coventry was soaring for a mark in the third quarter, when a Richmond backman, Joe Murdoch, renowned for his tough, ruthless play, who had previously noticed a large boil on Coventry's neck, punched hard at the boil. Coventry, a player highly respected for his fair play, was in great pain, and retaliated, "dropping" Murdoch. Coventry was reported for the only time in his career. Treating him as the "aggressor", the tribunal suspended Coventry for eight weeks, the "victim" Murdoch only received four weeks. Coventry missed the finals.

The only difference between the two events was that whilst Essendon had no real replacement for Coleman (Coleman's replacement Keith McDonald scored a total of 9 goals in his 13 senior matches in his two seasons with Essendon), Collingwood's replacement, the future Collingwood and Williamstown champion Ron Todd, was at least the equal of the man he replaced.