Tony Buhagiar
Tony Buhagiar | |||
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Personal information | |||
Full name | Anthony Francis Buhagiar | ||
Date of birth | 3 October 1955 | ||
Place of birth | Western Australia | ||
Height | 166 cm (5 ft 5 in) | ||
Weight | 74 kg (163 lb) | ||
Position(s) | Rover | ||
Playing career1 | |||
Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
1973–1980, 1986 | East Fremantle | 138 (274) | |
1981–1984 | Essendon | 83 (135) | |
1985 |
Footscray | 25 (36) | |
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1986. | |||
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com |
Anthony Francis "Tony" Buhagiar (born 3 October 1955) is a retired
A pint-sized
In 1981 he crossed the
As his career with Essendon progressed, the awards continued to flow including being the team's leading vote getter in the 1982 Brownlow Medal, most determined player in 1983 and state selection again in 1984. Although small in stature (166 cm and 74 kg), the courageous rover/goalsneak became a crowd favourite and was affectionately known as "The Budgie".
In his four years with Essendon, Buhagiar played in seven finals games and was among the team's best players in five of them, proving his reliability in big games. He was a part of Essendon's ill-fated 1983 grand final team, which suffered the biggest loss in grand final history until that time.
Essendon were to avenge their defeat in the following year's grand final, but it was to be without the "Budgie", who, after an injury interrupted season, was named only as an emergency.
Disappointed at having missed the Premiership, Buhagiar decided to return home to East Fremantle, but was talked into resurrecting his VFL career with
Buhagiar was a board member of the Fremantle Football Club from 2000 until 2009.[3]
References
- ^ Award to Ashton
- ^ 1981 Brownlow Medal
- ^ President Rick Hart to stand down Archived 1 October 2011 at the Wayback Machine
External links
- Tony Buhagiar's playing statistics from AFL Tables
- Tony Buhagiar at AustralianFootball.com