Fred Wimbridge
| Fred Wimbridge | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Fredrick John Wimbridge | ||
| Date of birth | 9 March 1893 | ||
| Place of birth | Broomehill, Western Australia | ||
| Date of death | 4 December 1977 (aged 84) | ||
| Place of death | Perth, Western Australia | ||
| Height | 188 cm (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Weight | 82 kg (181 lb) | ||
| Position(s) | Utility | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1911–16, 1919, 1928–29 | Perth | 105 | |
| 1920–1924 | West Perth | 47 (56) | |
| 1925 | South Melbourne | 8 (12) | |
|
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1929. | |||
| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Fredrick John "Fred" Wimbridge (9 March 1893 – 4 December 1977) was an Australian rules footballer who played in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL).[1]
Family
[edit]The son of David Arthur Wimbridge (1860–1926),[2] and Eliza Wimbridge (1863-1934), née Gorman,[3] Fredrick John Wimbridge was born at Broomehill, Western Australia on 9 March 1893.
He married Robina Vera Millikan (1898–1959) on 10 August 1920.
Football
[edit]Wimbridge started his career at Perth and was their leading goal-kicker in 1915 when he kicked 36 goals.[4]
He then spent two seasons away from the League on war service but returned to Perth in 1919.
The following year he joined West Perth and topped their goal-kicking in 1921 with 30 goals.[4] Despite playing as a forward that season, he made two appearances for Western Australia at the Perth Carnival as a fullback.[4] He represented Western Australia on one further occasion.[4]
He was already 32 when he made his way to South Melbourne, with whom he would play eight games in the 1925 VFL season.[5] His best performance was a five-goal haul in a win over Footscray at Lake Oval.[5]
After two years playing elsewhere in Victoria, Wimbridge returned to his original club Perth.[4] He participated in the 1928 and 1929 seasons and then retired, having played 105 games for Perth.[4][6]
Military service
[edit]He enlisted in the First AIF in October 1916, served overseas, and returned to Australia in June 1919.[7][8]
Bravery award
[edit]Wimbridge was awarded a Bronze Medal by the Royal Humane Society of Australasia in 1925, for conspicuous bravery when he risked his life in assisting the eventual rescue of four women from drowning.[9]
The four women, none of whom could swim, had been swept out to sea by the strong undertow of a rip at a beach in Mandurah, south of Perth, on Sunday, 23 March 1924. Three men were involved in the rescue: Wimbridge, Arthur Donald Lakeman (1896-1924), and Redvers Henry Buller Huxtable (1899-1985).[10] Lakeman drowned in the process of the rescue; one of the four women rescued was his wife, another was his sister.[11][12][13]
Death
[edit]He died at Perth, Western Australia on 4 December 1977.
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ Holmesby & Main, (2007).
- ^ Obituary: The Late Mr. David Arthur Wimbridge, The (Perth) Daily News, (Friday, 6 August 1926), p. 3.
- ^ Deaths: Wimbridge, The West Australian, (Saturday, 20 January 1934), p.1.
- ^ a b c d e f AustralianFootball.com.
- ^ a b AFL Tables.
- ^ Wimbridge Retires, The Albany Advertiser, (Tuesday, 29 April 1930), p. 3.
- ^ Nominal Roll.
- ^ Service Record.
- ^ Wimbridge: Presentation for Bravery, The (Perth) Daily News, (Friday, 21 1925), p. 8.
- ^ Conspicuous Bravery: Royal Humane Society Awards, The West Australian, (Monday, 24 August 1925), p. 8.
- ^ Lakeman Drowning Fatality, The South Western Advertiser, (Friday, May 1924), p. 3.
- ^ A Mandurah Tragedy: Gallant Rescue from Drowning: Hero Loses his Life, The (Perth) Daily News, (Monday, 24 March 1924), p 8.
- ^ The Mandurah Fatality, The West Australian, (Wednesday, 26 March 1924), p. 8.
References
[edit]- Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2007). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers. BAS Publishing. ISBN 978-1-920910-78-5.
- World War One Nominal Roll: Private Frederick Wimbridge (3173), collection of the Australian War Memorial.
- World War One Service Record: Private Frederick Wimbridge (3173), National Archives of Australia.
External links
[edit]- Fred Wimbridge's playing statistics from AFL Tables
- Frederick Wimbridge, at WAFL FootyFacts.
- Fred Wimbridge at AustralianFootball.com
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