Brendan Edwards

Recruited from local side Hawthorn Citizens, Brendan Edwards became the driving force of the Hawks' midfield during their ascent to power in the late 1950s and early 1960s. A centreman who approached the game with a level of professionalism decades ahead of his time, Edwards was a fanatic for physical conditioning, using circuit training to build an endurance base that allowed him to run opponents into the ground. While he was not the most naturally gifted kick, his work rate and ability to accumulate possession were elite, culminating in a dominant performance in the 1961 Grand Final where he was widely judged best afield in the club's first premiership victory.

Despite finishing runner-up in the 1960 Brownlow Medal, Edwards' career was relatively brief, ending prematurely in 1963 due to a chronic knee injury and his desire to focus on his health club business. He retired having played just 109 games, leaving a legacy that extended well beyond his on-field statistics. Edwards later returned to Hawthorn as a fitness instructor, where his rigorous training methods laid the physical foundations for the club's golden era in the 1970s, and he was eventually immortalised as the centreman in the Hawthorn Team of the Century.