On his 86th birthday, 1955 Tyntynder premiership player Gerald Hogan will return to Swan Hill to watch his beloved Bulldogs on Saturday.
Mr Hogan is believed to be one of the last remaining players from that premiership squad, a red-headed wingman who wore number 12.
He returned to Swan Hill for a reunion in the 1990s, but hasn’t returned to the region since moving to Bendigo in the early 1970s.
His son, Terry, will travel with him, and says his father is looking forward to returning.
“It’ll be good to bring him back to the region,” he said.
Mr Hogan was born and bred in the region, growing up in Annuello, north of Manangatang. Born in 1931, his young age meant he was just too young to fight in the Second World War.
He shared a passion for boxing with his brothers, and they were pretty good at it.
However, football was Gerald’s true calling. Shortly after the Bulldogs’ triumph in 1955, his football career was cruelly cut short.
“He damaged some cartilage a season or two after that premiership and that was pretty much it,” son Terry said.
“It’s not like it is now, where they sort you out and you’re good to go in a few weeks. That was the end of it for him.”
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