Alf Dear

A product of Geelong College, Alf Dear was a gifted athlete whose promising career was defined by versatility and ultimately curtailed by tragedy. Originally from the Dog Rocks area on the outskirts of Geelong, he broke into the Pivotonians' lineup in 1898 as a mobile ruckman capable of covering the ground with the speed of a professional sprinter—a trait evidenced by his podium finish in the prestigious Sheffield Handicap. Following his father's death and the subsequent sale of the family farm, Dear relocated to Melbourne and transferred to Essendon for the 1900 season, where the Same Olds utilised his rare combination of height and pace on the wing and half-forward line. His time in the VFL was abruptly ended in just his sixth game for his new club when he sustained a severe chest injury against Fitzroy; he never played again and passed away from complications associated with his poor health just six years later, leaving behind a brief legacy that would later be revitalised by his great-nephew, Collingwood legend Peter McKenna.