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Harcourt Dowsley

Harcourt Dowsley 1942 DOB: 15 July 1919
Died: 30 October 2014

From: Melbourne Grammar/Old Melburnians

Number: 28 (1940 list)

Games: 0 (3 total)
Goals: 0 (7 total)

A school premiership player in 1937 - a captain of the Melbourne Grammar championship cricket side the same year - Dowsley was one the key figures in his side's two successive amateurs premierships in 1938 and 1939, He trained with the side before 1938, won a residential clearance from Essendon in 1939 and later played reserves football for Melbourne but was unable to crack the senior squad's defence in the midst of the premiership hat-trick despite being named on the senior list in 1940.

In the summer he was a first XI cricketer for the MCC, and enlisted with the army (15th Field Regiment) at the start of World War II, before transferring to the RAAF (20 Squadron) in 1941 along with his brother. While they were waiting to be called into action, Dowsley was invited to play at Carlton by a cricketing teammate. Melbourne granted him a clearance to Carlton where he kicked four goals on debut.

Dowsley played his last of three games in round 7 before being called into service. He was invited back to Carlton after being discharged in 1946, but chose to concentrate on cricket instead. He played five first class games for Victoria.

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Other Players
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Media
Age - 04/06/1938
Argus - 08/06/1938
Argus - 02/06/1939
Argus - 28/06/1939
Sporting Globe - 27/04/1940

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