Arthur Mann

Recruited from Brighton, Arthur Mann was a diminutive (170cm) footballer whose VFL career was almost entirely swallowed by the First World War. He made his debut in Round 12, 1914, playing just two games before enlisting on the very first day volunteers were called, trading his guernsey for a uniform as a bugler and trumpeter. Mann served with distinction and paid a heavy physical toll, surviving two wounds at Gallipoli and a gas attack in France while rising to the rank of 2nd Lieutenant. Remarkably, he returned to Essendon in 1919 only weeks after his discharge to play one final game, a testament to his resilience and club loyalty. His legacy at Windy Hill is defined less by his on-field exploits and more by his profound service and sacrifice, a tragedy compounded years later when his son Keith was lost on the HMAS Sydney during the Second World War.