2 February 2016
by Mike Dornau
Erwin Dornau showed he had the potential to go all the way, even as a young boy growing up in Brisbane, near Breakfast Creek in Windsor, in what seemed a real Huckleberry Finn lifestyle. In fact, he recalled running around barefoot kicking a football made from rolled-up newspapers.
He represented Queensland as a schoolboy in football, cricket and swimming. Unusually, he was a left foot kick, bowled right arm and batted left handed.
In 1939, he was selected for the Queensland Schoolboy side that went to Perth – what an adventure for a thirteen year old.
But in those days, you only stayed at school if you came from a wealthy family, so he left school to work with his older brother on an ice wagon to raise some money for the family.
He then started his apprenticeship as a plasterer in 1941 at the age of fifteen, but it was sport that was his real passion.
In fact, when you think back, he showed amazing intelligence as he had the sense to choose Aussie Rules ahead of that other game, with the nearby Windsor Football Ground becoming his second home.
His workmates then suggested that Erwin take the next step and actually join the Kedron Football Club, which he did and started playing in the junior ranks.
However, it didn’t take long for his true talent to become obvious, and he was actually selected in the senior side with The Redlegs at just fifteen years of age. He said that the standard was like the current VFL – so that was an incredible effort for a teenager – and he was soon the permanent centre half back.
This glorious sunny life all changed when he enlisted in the RAAF as soon as he turned eighteen in March 1944.
He didn’t miss a game up until the day he enlisted, and his love of footy didn’t stop there as they continued to play games while serving in the air force.
He served two months on the island of Marita before sailing to Borneo and Balak Papan to ‘push the Japanese off the island’.
For some fun they also played the odd footy game, and he surprised many of his southern state comrades with his form on the dodgy coral fields they used to play on in the tropics.
At one time a group of Queenslanders set up a game of Aussie Rules with some soldiers from Victoria, for a little wager as well. The cocky Victorians upped the wager when they knew they were playing Banana Benders (assuming they only played Rugby) and were subsequently flogged.
After the war he returned to Kedron and again represented Queensland in both cricket and football in 1946-47.
In 1947, he was also selected to play for the Queensland Australian Rules team at the National Carnival that was staged n Hobart.
He continued his great form against the traditional footy states and was actually runner-up for the prestigious Tassie Medal for the Best Player at the carnival, against the very best VFL footballers at the time. This fantastic effort naturally attracted the attention of several Victorian clubs at the time.
Prior to the war Victorian Clubs only looked west – WA and SA – for new talent and never considered the North as they were Rugby territories. So Erwin was a real trail blazer.
When he returned home the local newspaper claimed that “Dornau has undoubtedly established himself as the Aussie code’s outstanding player for the 1947 season … He is the type of player who never fails to please and thrill spectators”.
Two clubs then went in earnest pursuit of Dornau, with him finally selecting South Melbourne ahead of Collingwood.
The man who convinced him to choose South was Jack Hale, a former Carlton star who represented Victoria in 1937 and was a Premiership player for Carlton in 1938. Hale’s career ended after he broke a leg in 1941, aged just 26.
Jack coached the Swans for two seasons (1948 and 1949) and then Hawthorn where he led them to their first ever finals appearance in 1957. He was also credited for creating the tough style of play that the Hawks became famous for – and used so to this very day.
Hale was visiting Brisbane as a travelling salesman and was asked to do some recruiting work for the VFL – especially to track down that young Dornau who had played so well at the carnival in Tasmania.
After speaking with South Melbourne, Erwin was sure he wasn’t good enough but said that “as long as they’d fly me back home if I didn’t make it, I’d come down”.
So he signed with the Swans for a 13 week trial prior to the 1948 season. South found him a job, he moved into Bill Bell’s Hotel in Moray Street, South Melbourne. After showing great form in several practice matches, he was named on the Swans’ 1948 Senior list under coaches Bull Adams and Jack Hale.
He was registered with the VFL on April 13, 1948 as Player Number #2517.
He also made history as the very first Queenslander to play football at the elite VFL level and he used to say that this was an honour that no one could take away from him.
In those days there was no ‘professional’ football, even though he would get paid a small amount, so he started work in a mattress factory and at Bell’s pub, before finding a job as a plasterer.
His debut game was the very first game of the season – against guess who? Collingwood! Can you imagine how this 22 year old from Queensland felt when he ran onto Victoria Park in front of 47,000 people on Easter Monday. He was given number 17, and lined up on the half back flank alongside his mentor Gentleman Jim Cleary.
His next game was against Carlton, which he said was a pretty rugged affair after the famous Bloodbath Grand Final in 1945 – and several of his teammates were out for revenge, including the aptly named Jack ‘Basher’ Williams.
‘Doe’ as his teammates now called him, says one of his most memorable moments that first season was when Cleary was injured and he was selected at centre half back for the game against Richmond, playing on the legendary Jack ‘Captain Blood’ Dyer.
Erwin said that Dyer (who was a veteran at this stage in his second last season, Richmond Captain and having played nearly 300 games) refused to shake his hand. As the siren blew to start the game he said the next thing he recalls was being on the ground, shaking his sore head and looking up at Jack Dyer standing over him. He vividly remembered what Captain Blood said to him as he looked down ‘Welcome to the VFL son!’
He had a great first season playing fourteen games with South, just missing the finals by one win, scoring 11 points in the Brownlow Medal and judged runner-up in the Swans’ Best & Fairest to Ron Clegg.
Over the next five years he played with and against some of the greatest players ever to play the game, and he cited the greatest as teammate Brownlow Medallist Clegg.
He said his toughest opponents, apart from Dyer, were Charlie Sutton at Footscray and especially John Coleman at Essendon.
He described Coleman as being a ‘tough bugger … don’t let that baby face fool you … Give him one and he’d give you a couple back”. We presume he was talking about beers!!
But he said the toughest opponent was Bobbie Davis at Geelong – the fastest footballer he has ever seen – even up to the modern times.
Very early in his time in Melbourne he caught the eye of Peggie Ryan, a member of the Social Committee and Queen of the Supporters, and they were married in Middle Park on Derby Day – October 29, 1949. It must have been love at first sight, because they actually met on his first day in Melbourne – Australia Day in 1948.
They were the perfect couple and she was so proud of her new husband. A pride that would remain for the rest of her life as right up to the very end she would tell virtually every new person they met “did you know he was the very first Queenslander to play VFL football”.
Jack and Jean Hale later also became close friends with the Dornaus, living in nearby Bentleigh.
Footy life in those days also had a lighter side with Erwin and other VFL players regularly appearing on radio on ‘Football Inquest’ on station 3KZ, including some entertaining variety performances.
He suffered a few injury problems and missed nearly one and a half seasons at South with knee and cartilage problems and operations – today they’re probably out for a lot less time.
Here’s how they described Erwin in the Encyclopedia of League Footballers … “A utility recruited from Queenland. He attracted attention by running second in the 1947 Tassie Medal and when he came to Victoria he proved to be a strapping centre half back who could use his weight and kick long”.
Dornau was also dubbed by ABC commentator Doug Heywood as the ‘Human Bulldozer’.
A report in The Sun newspaper described how South’s search for key defence player had been resolved in one game against Essendon:
FULL-BACK WORRY AT AN END – Dornau Man for the Job.
Filling the key post in goals has been the cause of many a headache to South selectors this season. Now their worries appear to be over.
Erwin Dornau, utility player, who was moved to full back after Coleman had scored four goals in the opening quarter of the last match against the Dons has played so effectively since that he appears to have strengthened his grip as the permanent full back in 1952.
The real proof of his fitness for the role lies in his ability to stand shoulder-to-shoulder and mix it with the opposing centre forward. In his previous games as full-back, he held Coleman, who started off as though set for a field day, to three goals in three terms; Noel Clarke (Melbourne) to two in two quarters, and one of those was obtained from a free in goalbase when a Melbourne man was skittled in the centre of the ground after disposing of the ball, and actually could not be debited against Dornau. Dunstan, well-up in the League goalkicking list, was held to one goal – and that from a gift free kick in the goal base. Six goals by three star forwards in nine quarters of play proves Dornau’s effectiveness.
Another newspaper report later in his time with South stated that: “Erwin Dornau rendered good service all day, whether on the ball or in defence. His marking was sure, and even near the end when it was clearly visible that his solid ruck work had taken toll of his stamina he battled on and never let up. Since joining South from Queensland, Doe has been set back by injuries, cartilage trouble keeping him out of the game for most of two seasons. Now fit, he is a great asset to the team and seems to be set for a good year.”
Doe’s biggest disappointment in football was South’s missing the Final Four in 1952 under Captain-Coach Gordon Lane.
After five seasons his knee problems got the better of him at that level – it’s a shame the injuries got in the way of his full potential
However, he didn’t stop playing footy after his VFL career ended prematurely.
He followed the traditional nomadic path out of the major league as Captain-Coach of several country sides starting at Leeton in the Riverina, then Catani in Gippsland, before returning to Melbourne and the McKinnon Football Club in the Federal League.
He had an immediate impact, again as Captain-Coach of McKinnon, and the team won three consecutive premierships.
He remained involved with the South Melbourne Football Club and the Past Players Group, serving as a President of the Past Players in 1981.
He was devastated when the Swans move to Sydney was planned, and fought hard as part of the Keep South at South Committee – but the rest is now history.
He was disappointed when they moved, as he would attend every home game religiously with his old teammates, but red and white ran deeply in his veins and he always remained a staunch supporter.
Peg and Erwin moved to Woodend in 2001 for the country lifestyle they had both always longed for, and footy remained an important part of their lives.
He was delighted when, in June 2003, he was invited by the AFL to go to Brisbane, all expenses paid, to attend the presentation of the Queensland ‘Team of the Century’. Despite failing health and those dodgy knees, he was so proud to be standing on stage alongside the likes of Jason Dunstall, Jason Akermanis, Mal Michael, Mick Nolan, Nick Reiwoldt and Michael Voss.
And then in 2005, the Swans finally did it – their first premiership in 72 years.
Unfortunately, he died in the week prior to the 2008 Grand Final, the day after the Brownlow Medal was announced. Ironically, just a few weeks later he received an invitation to attend the ceremony in Brisbane for the naming of the inaugural inductees into the Queensland Australian Football ‘Hall of Fame’. His eldest son Michael was honoured to attend in his late father’s honour, joined by many proud relatives still living in Queensland.
A fitting finale for ‘the first Queenslander to play in the VFL’.
Erwin Dornau, South Melbourne
Erwin Dornau (left) and Jack Hale
Erwin Dornau at centre of back row in a young Kedron team circa 1940
Erwin Dornau in South Melbourne attire
Erwin Dornau at centre of back row in the South Melbourne team
Erwin Dornau Kornies card
