Brian Leslie France (born 9 July 1939) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the West Perth Football Club in the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL) between 1958 and 1967. He was inducted in to the West Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2007, and is a member of the West Perth Team of the Century.[1]
| Brian France | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Brian Leslie France | ||
| Nickname(s) | Puffer | ||
| Date of birth | 9 July 1939 | ||
| Original team(s) | Mount Hawthorn | ||
| Height | 183 cm (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Weight | 86 kg (190 lb) | ||
| Position(s) | Centre half-back | ||
| Playing career | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1958–1967 | West Perth | 157 (2) | |
| Representative team honours | |||
| Years | Team | Games (Goals) | |
| 1962–1967 | Western Australia | 9 (0) | |
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
| Source: AustralianFootball.com | |||
Biography
editFrance was recruited by West Perth from Mount Hawthorn. He made his debut in round one of the 1959 season, aged 19. Standing 183 centimetres (6 ft 0 in) and weighing 86 kilograms (190 lb), France quickly established himself in the West Perth line-up, winning a premiership in his second season as the Cardinals defeated archrivals East Perth by 32 points in the grand final. A bullocking centre half-back, he twice won the Breckler Medal as West Perth's best and fairest, in 1963 and 1965.[1]
France made his state debut in August 1962, against South Australia at Subiaco Oval. He would play nine state games in total, including four in the 1966 Australian National Football Carnival in Hobart.[2] In the 1966 WANFL season, France polled 18 Sandover Medal votes to finish third overall, just behind Bill Walker (20 votes) and Barry Cable (19 votes). He was in stellar form early the following year, but in round fourteen suffered a career-ending knee injury and never played again. Despite this he still polled 18 Sandover votes, finishing runner-up behind equal winners Bill Walker and John Parkinson.[1][3]
References
edit- ^ a b c "Brian Leslie FRANCE » WA Football Hall of Fame". www.wafootballhalloffame.com.au. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
- ^ "Resources - WA Football". www.wafootball.com.au. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
- ^ "Australian Football - Brian France - Player Bio". australianfootball.com. Retrieved 30 May 2017.