Norm Smith - Coaching Career

Coaching Career

Disappointingly for Smith, the committee decided (by a single vote) to award the job to ex-Melbourne premiership skipper, Allan LaFontaine. Anxious to begin coaching, Smith made an emotionally difficult decision to transfer to Fitzroy as captain-coach. He played only seventeen games with the 'Roys before retiring as a player in 1950. His time at Fitzroy was a mixed bag: the team was competitive without making the finals. Meanwhile, Melbourne were struggling and LaFontaine resigned after three years. So in 1952, Smith returned to Melbourne as coach. Benefiting from the recruitment of some of the best players in the club's history, Smith and Melbourne dominated the VFL for a decade, during which the club won six premierships: 1955-56-57, 1959–60 and 1964.