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Laurie Mithen

Image DOB: 15 April 1934
Died: 2 February 2022

Debut: Round 1, 1954 against Collingwood at MCG
Last Game: Semi Final 1962 against Carlton at MCG

From: Ormond

Number: 11 (1954-1962)

Honours:
Premiership Player - 1955, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1960
Grand Final team - 1954, 1958
Best and Fairest - 1958, 1959
Victorian State Player - 1958
Team of the Century interchange
150 Heroes selection
Life Member - 2013
MFC Hall of Fame - 2003

Games: 153
Goals: 108
Career Statistics

WinsDrawsLossesWinning %
11413874.50

Recruited from Ormond - where had just won a best and fairest - Mithen had wanted to go to Richmond but was zoned to the Demons instead. It didn't take him long to come to terms with being a Melbourne player.

Originally centreman, hed was moved half-forward midway through his first year. As his career progressed Mithen moved back to the centre and became a tough, clever midfielder. Never playing less than ten games in a season he was a Grand Final player in his first year, and a premiership player in the second.

He won another flag in 1956 - despite missing a match after suffering frostbite in his feet - and was well on the way in 1957 before a broken foot robbed him of six weeks of football. Nevertheless he made it back into the side and played in that year's Grand Final triumph.

1958 was a career year for Mithen as he won his first Best and Fairest award and represented Victoria. The next season he added another 'Bluey', and despite only kicking seven goals for the season he had six in one quarter against Fitzroy in Round 3.

1960 was another excellent year for Mithen and he played in his fifth premiership side. The next year the Demons were outed in the finals, and it was Mithen being felled 80 metres behind play which caused the Demons to go off the boil in their Semi Final loss against Hawthorn.

In 1961 he played 17 games despite missing three weeks in the middle of the year with fractured cheekbones. First he was injured on the left side against Collingwood in Round 8, and after a two week break he returned for the Round 11 win over Richmond and injured the right side. The second injury was less severe and he only missed a week.

At the end of 1962, a year he served as vice-captain, Mithen accepted a job as the captain/coach of Port Melbourne. He played 52 games total for Port between 1963 and 1965, including the 1964 premiership then moved to the WAFL to play for Claremont. He played 34 games there over two seasons.

Mithen was named as an interchange player in the club's Team of the Century.

AFLW premiership player Lily Mithen is a distant relative, her grandfather was Laurie's cousin.

YearGamesGoalsBrownlow
1954 1362
1955 17222
1956 1880
1957 1210
1958 2013
1959 1975
1960 2033
1961 17231
1962 17371

Notes
Some sources list his origin as Hampden Rovers.

Lists
VFA
WAFL

Media
Argus - 08/01/1954
Argus - 18/06/1956
Age - 03/07/1956
Age - 03/07/1961
melbournefc.com.au - 22/03/2013
melbournefc.com.au - 03/02/2022

Links
Boyles Football Photos
Demonwiki image gallery
VFA Project profile
WAFL Footy Facts profile
Wikipedia profile

Created by Supermercado. Last Modification: Wednesday 10 May 2023 21:52:53 AEST by Supermercado. (Version 35)

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