Tommy Downs

Standing just 159cm, Tommy Downs was a diminutive yet combustible rover who arrived at Princes Park with a glowing reputation as a Recorder Cup winner with Northcote in the VFA. While he possessed the nippy pace and goal sense required of a resting forward, his career was defined by a staggering disciplinary record that saw him suspended for more matches than he actually played. A fierce competitor who frequently clashed with arch-rivals Richmond, Downs missed huge chunks of his prime due to tribunal bans, including a 12-week suspension in 1928 and a 19-week sentence in 1929. His most infamous moment came in 1931 when he was handed a crushing 29-match ban for kicking Richmond captain Maurie Hunter, a charge for which he was wrongly convicted; teammate Frank O'Rourke later confessed to the act years after Downs had served the time. Despite these interruptions, he remained a cult figure among the Carlton faithful for his fearlessness, eventually returning for a handful of games in 1933 before hanging up the boots.