Charlie Stewart (footballer, born 1939) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Charlie Stewart |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Charles Stewart | ||
| Date of birth | 19 March 1939 | ||
| Date of death | 29 October 2024 | ||
| Original team | Essendon reserves, Lemnos | ||
| Position(s) | Wingman | ||
Charles Stewart (born March 19, 1939; died October 29, 2024) was an Australian rules football player and coach. He was best known for playing for the Footscray team in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Charlie Stewart was also from an Indigenous Australian background.
Playing Football
Charlie Stewart started his football journey with the Nathalia Football Club. He played there from 1955 to 1957.
In 1957, Stewart played for the reserve (or second) team at the Essendon club. After that, he played for the Lemnos team for a while.
In April 1961, Essendon allowed Charlie Stewart to move to the Footscray team. He played 20 games for Footscray during the 1961 VFL season. He was a reserve player in the Footscray team that played in the big championship game, the 1961 VFL Grand Final, but they lost. He left Footscray in April 1962.
Coaching Teams
After his playing days, Stewart became a playing coach for the Kyabram team. This meant he played in the games while also coaching the team. He coached them until the end of the 1966 season.
For the 1967 season, he moved to the Stanhope team. There, he continued his role as a playing coach.
Special Recognitions
On May 26, 2014, the Western Bulldogs (the new name for Footscray) created a special Indigenous uniform. This uniform had the names of all 18 Indigenous players who had played for the club.
The team wore this special uniform against Fremantle on June 1, 2014. Charlie Stewart was one of the 18 players honored on this special uniform.
The Jumper Story
After the 1961 Grand Final, players from the two teams often swapped their jerseys. Charlie Stewart traded his jersey with John Fisher, who played for the opposing team, Hawthorn.
In 2012, Charlie Stewart was cleaning his house and found Fisher's old jersey in a box. It was in excellent condition! He decided to give the jersey to the Hawthorn Football Club museum. The museum was very happy and called it a "wonderful gesture."
