DOB: 14 September 1943

Debut: Round 2, 1963 against Hawthorn at MCG
Last Game: Round 22, 1973 against North Melbourne at Waverley

From: Drouin High School/Neerim-Neerim South

Number: 14 (1963-1973)

Honours:
Premiership Player - 1964
Best First Year Player - 1963
Leading Goalkicker - 1963
Victorian representative - 1966, 1969, 1970
Night Series winner - 1971
Life Member - 1972
150 Heroes selection
Under 19s Best and Fairest - 1962
Under 19s Leading Goalkicker - 1962
MFC Hall of Fame - 2008

Games: 175
Goals: 154
Career Statistics

Wins	Draws	Losses	Winning %
77	1	97	44.00

Statistical categories led
Most games in jumper 14
Most goals in jumper 14

Signed by Melbourne in the dying days of unrestricted country recruiting, Bourke was lucky to make it to the club. Recruiter Ken Carlon set out to scout Bourke but went to the wrong ground. After the umpire of the Under 19s game gave Bourke a sparkling report, Carlon decided to recruit him anyway. He arrived with promising form, winning his club's Under 19s Best and Fairest and goalkicking at 17 years old, and finishing second in their senior Best and Fairest the next year.

Carlon's gamble paid off when Bourke led the Under 19 competition goalkicking in 1962, and winning Melbourne's Best and Fairest. He was promoted to the senior side after five goals in an end-of-season practice match against Essendon. He kicked 48 goals in his first season and was named Best First Year Player. In 1964 he was restricted to just 28 goals, but played in the winning Grand Final. Bourke found himself being shuffled around the ground, playing every position except full back and ruck, and only kicked six goals in 1965 before a broken wrist that required a bone graft ended his season prematurely. In 1966 he played for Victoria.

Bourke missed 1967 with a serious knee injury, but suffered further knee trouble in his pre-season match return. He missed the first two months of 1968, before being thrown straight back into the senior side in Round 9. His knee held up for the rest of the season, playing 12 games. In 1969 he went forward again, kicking 29 goals from 16 games, including a career-best eight during the Round 13 loss to North Melbourne. That year he was selected to play for Victoria again, and the next year Bourke was appointed vice-captain and finished runner-up in the Best and Fairest. Now almost exclusively a defender, Bourke was now relatively injury free, though he missed four games with a back injury in 1971, and had knee troubles for the rest of his career.

In Round 1, 1972, Peter Hudson of Hawthorn had eight goals to half time at Glenferrie Oval before a knee injury suffered after a collision with Bourke, who was running back with the flight of the ball when they crashed into each other. Hudson was carried off and missed the rest of the season.

Bourke lost his position as vice-captain at the start of 1973, and at the end of the season he was one of several players who announced they would leave Melbourne after the sacking of coach Ian Ridley. Ray Biffin, Peter Keenan and Greg Wells all returned, but Bourke never played another senior game. His decision was helped by a medical report advising him to have a knee reconstruction.

Bourke served on the committee from 1975 until resigning at the end of 1979. In his last year, he was chairman of the selection committee. He also operated the Barry Bourke of Berwick car dealership.

After failing to break into the Melbourne senior squad his son Darren joined St Kilda via Dandenong in the VFA and played 32 games between 1993 and 1996.

Year	Games	Goals	Brownlow
1963	19	48	0
1964	20	28	1
1965	12	6	0
1966	15	14	2
1968	12	4	0
1969	16	29	4
1970	21	7	9
1971	17	18	0
1972	22	0	4
1973	21	0	1

Tribunal record

Match	Charge	Sanction
Round 16, 1969	Striking	2 matches

Lists
Family at other clubs

Notes
Broken wrist may have been in 1966. From Jindivik but not clear that he played any football there.

Media
Age - 14/05/1971, 31/01/1973
Inside Football - 22/04/1972
MFC Past Players newsletter - 12/2021

Links
Boyles Football Photos
Demonwiki image gallery
Wikipedia profile