DOB: 8 April 1926
Died: 5 February 2024
Debut: Round 6, 1945 against Footscray at Western Oval
Last MFC Game: Round 18, 1948 against Carlton at Princes Park
From: Bentleigh
Number: 22 (1945), 27 (1946-1948)
Honours:
Grand Final team - 1946
Games: 39 (48 total)
Goals: 46 (52 total)
Career Statistics
| Wins | Draws | Losses | Winning % |
| 23 | 0 | 16 | 58.97 |
Rover recruited after finishing second in the Caulfield-Oakleigh Association league best and fairest. He was asked to train with Hawthorn but was residentially zoned to Melbourne.
All 10 of "Irish" O'Rourke's appearances in his last season at the Demons were as a reserve, one of only a handful of league players to be named a reserve ten times or more before the introduction of unlimited interchange.
In 1949 O'Rourke turned back interest from Fitzroy to sign with North Melbourne, who had been impressed with his form in a pre-season game. He played the first nine games of the season for North before transferring to VFA side Brighton. He later coached Glen Waverley for two years, and Wycheproof for three years. In 1957 he coached Leitchville.
| Year | Games | Goals | Brownlow |
| 1945 | 12 | 12 | 0 |
| 1946 | 14 | 28 | 0 |
| 1947 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 1948 | 10 | 5 | 0 |
Notes
Shown as being from Oakleigh District in 1945
Described as a player who "can play practically all positions on the field" in 1948, which is not consistent with a rover.
Lists
North Melbourne
Media
Argus - 18/10/1944, 11/03/1949, 07/04/1949, 23/06/1949
Sporting Globe - 20/06/1945
Herald - 01/03/1949, 22/03/1949, 09/08/1951
Football Record - R17 1964
Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper - 15/10/2020, 30/09/2021
Melbourne FC past players newsletter - 06/2022
Links
Australian Football profile
Demonwiki image gallery
VFA Project profile
Wikipedia profile