The Archive | Mike Hammond who died in early June was a footballer with wide experience at VFL and BFL levels.

He was a 191 cm (6 ft. 3 ins) ruckman who played for Richmond, Eaglehawk and Golden Square and also coached at secondary school level.
Recruited from his home town of Maryborough when he was just 18 Mike went on to play 35 games with the Tigers’ seniors between 1964 and 1966, also racking up 24 reserves games as well.
Mike’s debut game in the VFL was in May 1964 when he ran out for the Tigers against South Melbourne. It was a Round 3 fixture.
His final senior game was 1966’s round 9 match when Richmond took on St Kilda.
He was also a member of Richmond’s Twos side which won the 1966 VFL Reserves flag.
After three years at Punt Road Mike moved on to Sandringham in the then VFA where he played two seasons, using his handballing skills to bring his smaller Zebras’ teammates into the game.
He played 30 games with Sandringham between 1968 and 1969 before returning to central Victoria for a celebrated BFL career.
Eaglehawk was his first stop. He notched 45 games and booted 25 goals for the Two Blues between 1970 and 1971, including the 1971 premiership win by the Hawks over his second club, Golden Square.
He’d won Eaglehawk’s best and fairest award in 1970, the season before that premiership year.
Mike ran out for the Wade Street Bulldogs for three seasons --- 1972 to 1974 --- and racked up 50 games hammering home 35 goals.
Again he won a club best and fairest award, this time Golden Square’s 1973 medal.
Mike also represented Bendigo nine times in all and was a member of the famous 1972 Blue and Gold representative team which won the Victorian country championships title.
As a young man Mike had played 35 games with his hometown club of Maryborough --- then in the Ballarat league – between 1961 and 1963.
So he’d started and finished his career with the Magpies as a teenager before moving on to Richmond.
We used to have a laugh about the atrocious score Square kicked in the 1971 grand final loss to Eaglehawk.
The Bulldogs managed just 3.10 (28) to fall 75 points short of the Hawks’ winning score of 15.13 (103).
But the Dogs turned the tables the very next year, winning the 1972 flag by 21 points over South Bendigo.
I’d see Mike at both Eaglehawk and Square games during the 2000s: in the grandstand at Canterbury Park as well as when he was in the upstairs viewing area at Wade Street.
Of course he’d played with both clubs. He really enjoyed the fixtures when his two old sides clashed.
I’m not sure now which club he barracked for although I’m pretty sure he was neutral!
As a coach Mike had led the then Marist Brothers (now Catholic College) 1989 premiership team which took out the Victorian secondary schools title.
Born in July, 1945 Mike was 72 when he passed.

By Richard Jones