Doves laud their history

By Brad Kingsbury
DOVETON Football Club will celebrate its rich 50-year history on Saturday, 13 June and the event will boast a unique highlight with the announcement of a team of indigenous players who have represented the Doves since 1959.
Members of the Doveton Hall of Fame will also be announced, but much of the interest on the evening will surround the make-up of the indigenous side.
Life-long member and one of the selectors of the side, Bert Batten, was a major driving force behind the concept and said that there would be very few, if any, local clubs in Victoria that could produce such a side over its history.
“I’ve never heard of any and it’s something I think is pretty unique,” he said.
“Doveton always welcomed everyone into the club and quite a few aboriginal families settled in the area and made our club their home. We were lucky they did because you only have to look at some of the names in the side to see how good they were.”
Batten joined the club in its second season and played from 1960 to 1968 when coaching became his priority.
He coached the Doveton Youth Club in 1964-65 and then took the youngsters to the senior club and won the 1966, ’67, ’68 and ’69 premierships, became president in 1971 for two years and then went on to coach the reserves.
He has always held the club’s indigenous players and their families in high esteem and said that football life in the heady days of the 1960s and 1970s was a lot tougher for all players, but especially so for the indigenous players.
He added that he was proud that Doveton did not discriminate and fostered acceptance rather than segregation.
On the 50-year celebration Batten said that there had been many good players and good people pass through the club.
He named Ronnie O’Brien, Frank ‘Rocky’ Clifford, Alan Osborne, Stephen Henwood and Steven Charles among the best he had seen and added that the toughest included John Edwards, Tom Cantwell, Mark Mitchell and his son Stuart.
Newly appointed AFL Victoria KickStart Indigenous Development Manager Leon Egan praised Batten and the selection committee for their persistence in getting the team together for the special celebration.
Egan played 162 games with the Doves and classes himself as a Doveton boy through and through.
“I compliment Bert on this. He had a vision and stuck to it,” he said.
“Doveton Football Club has been at the forefront of accepting indigenous people into the football community.
“I’ve never ever known of an issue or been made aware of any issue between indigenous and non-indigenous people at Doveton.”
“That’s credit to the club and the people who have made it great over the years.”
Batten made special mention of several indigenous families who joined the club at its begin-ning and whose relatives remain a big part of Doveton.
“The Charles family, Jack and Nancy Charles brought their family down from Deniliquin in NSW. Jack became a trainer and (son) Steven played and coached and became a Doveton legend,” he said.
“The Walker family also came down. Ray and Barbara Walker brought their sons ‘Brickie’, Daryl, Ray and Gary and they all played together in the sides of the 1960s.”
Doveton is holding a season-long series of events to mark the 50th anniversary.
That will culminate in a 50th Anniversary Hall of Fame dinner to be held at the grand ballroom at the Grand International in Dandenong on Saturday night, 13 June.
Tickets include a three-course meal, beer, wine and soft drink and are available from the club at $75 each.
For further information contact Andrew Simpson on 0438 800 202.