Few supporters in this generation of fans will have heard of Essendon’s George Rawle, much less know of his particular claim to fame.
Rawle ‘s introduction to League football could barely have been more dramatic. Just six weeks short of his 34th birthday, he made his Essendon debut in the 1923 Grand Final. He won a premiership medal that day in just his first game of League football.
Rawle, who’d been a star at North Melbourne in the VFA, went on to play only another 18 games with Essendon but he won a second premiership medal in 1924 although this time without playing in a Grand Final as the VFL reverted to a round-robin finals competition that year.
Remarkable as that is, Rawle was not the first Essendon player to debut in the biggest game of the year. That honour belongs to Essendon player John ‘Harry’ Prout, who made his League debut in the 1908 Grand Final, albeit in a losing side.
He’s the first man in League history to debut in a Grand Final.
In both 1897 and 1924 the premiers were decided by a round robin competition and not through a Grand Final as we know it.
You can learn more about every Essendon player and every club game played in the 'history' section on essendonfc.com.au.
