Time Travellers in Essendon, Flemington and the Keilor Plains
This and other photos associated with the Women Haters' Club, have been generously loaned for scanning by Jenny Ryssenbeek, and will find their way onto this website in the next few weeks. Identifying the people in the photos and dating them will be a challenge, and I warmly welcome any assistance with this.
The team above is not certainly the Essendon Lacrosse Club - another local team was the Maribyrnong Lacrosse Club associated with the Ascot Vale Presbyterian Church in Maribyrnong Rd, Moonee Ponds. However, if the man seated third from the left in the front row is Edward Webster Dodgshun, then the club is likely to be the Essendon one. The identification of this man is discussed in the Time Travellers blog. Essendon was unable to reform after the disruption of the Great War, so the photo can probably be dated to 1912-1915.
There had been 52 teams playing in Melbourne when war broke out, but the attitude of the Association, ensured that many teams could not be reformed after the war. "Under strict war conditions the V L A commenced its season's programme on Saturday. Players of military age, before being allowed to participate in the game, have to supply satisfactory reasons for not having donned khaki." ("SPORTING." The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957) 13 May 1918: 4. Web. 5 Feb 2016 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1658842>.)
The following men are known to have been members of the Essendon Lacrosse Club:
ESSENDON LACROSSE CLUB, PREMIERS SEASON 1902-3.
Standing (from left to right— J. Davine, W. Howieson, P. Davine (vice-pres) I, George, Gay (sec.), G. Gay, vice-pres.), W. Gordon, P. Touzel. Sitting.— M. Davine. C. Thrussell, A. Rudd (capt.), N. Fryer, F. Dunn, in front.— G. Graham, John Davine. (G. Gay, photo.)
The History of Men's Lacrosse in Victoria, 1876-1994.
" In the report of the annual meeting of the Victorian Lacrosse Association in "The Australasian" of 9 May 1890 it is noted that a club had been started at Essendon. " (p 13)
In 1897 the Premiership list included local clubs Essendon, Moonee Ponds and Flemington. (p 15). The beginning of the Maribyrnong Lacrosse Club is not mentioned, but it was one of the clubs to resume playing after the War in 1919. (p 59). We known Charley Levens had played with that club before the war.
Essendon Boys' Lacrosse Team, 1934. Museums Victoria Collections https://collections.museumvictoria.com.au/items/1688848 Accessed 24 April 2018
Top Row: 1 2 3 John David Sullivan 4 5 John Hawksworth
Middle Row: 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6
Front Row: 1, 2