Tommy Lahiff
Essendon, Hawthorn and South Melbourne
AFL career
74 games100 goals
- Debut
- R1 1935 v MEL27 Apr 1935
- Most recent
- R12 1944 v ESS22 July 1944
Coaching career
19 games2 wins16 losses1 draws
- First
- R1 1944 v ESS6 May 1944
- Most recent
- R11 1965 v RCH10 July 1965
Stats
1944 | HAW | 1 | 0.0 |
1943 | HAW | 13 | 1.5 |
1942 | SME | 6 | 1.7 |
1942 | HAW | 5 | 0.6 |
1937 | ESS | 16 | 1.3 |
1936 | ESS | 15 | 1.0 |
1935 | ESS | 18 | 1.8 |
Bio
Recruited from the VFA as a mature-age talent, Tommy "The Turk" Lahiff was a tenacious rover and forward pocket whose career was defined by his aggressive attack on the ball and natural leadership. He made an immediate impact at Essendon, winning the Best First Year Player award in 1935, before returning to his beloved Port Melbourne to captain-coach the club to consecutive premierships. The suspension of the VFA during the Second World War prompted a return to the elite level in 1942, where he played briefly for South Melbourne—famously kicking five goals on debut—before crossing to Hawthorn mid-season. Lahiff finished his VFL playing days as captain-coach of the Hawks, though his legacy endured for decades afterward as a Port Melbourne icon and a pioneering sideline commentator in football radio.
Profile
- Born
- 31 July 1910
- Died
- 08 Dec 1996 (aged 86y 130d)
- Birthplace
- Richmond, VIC
- Deathplace
- Box Hill, VIC
- Height
- 168 cm
- Weight
- 68 kg
Teams
Coaching
- Hawthorn (Senior Coach)194418 games (W2 L15 D1), 11.1%
- South Melbourne (Senior Coach)19651 games (W0 L1 D0), 0.0%
Bio
1 revisionRecruited from the VFA as a mature-age talent, Tommy "The Turk" Lahiff was a tenacious rover and forward pocket whose career was defined by his aggressive attack on the ball and natural leadership. He made an immediate impact at Essendon, winning the Best First Year Player award in 1935, before returning to his beloved Port Melbourne to captain-coach the club to consecutive premierships. The suspension of the VFA during the Second World War prompted a return to the elite level in 1942, where he played briefly for South Melbourne—famously kicking five goals on debut—before crossing to Hawthorn mid-season. Lahiff finished his VFL playing days as captain-coach of the Hawks, though his legacy endured for decades afterward as a Port Melbourne icon and a pioneering sideline commentator in football radio.