Don Williams

DOB: 3 November, 1935
Died: October, 1995

Debut: Round 3, 1953 against North Melbourne at Arden Street
Last Game: Round 3, 1968 against South Melbourne at Lake Oval

Games: 205
Goals: 5
Career Statistics (external link)

Wins	Draws	Losses	Winning %
127	3	75	61.95

From: Elsternwick Amateurs

Number: 25 1953-1959 Number 35 1964- 1968

Honours:
Premiership Player - 1955, 1956, 1957, 1959, 1964
Grand Final team - 1954, 1958
Team of the Century - half-back flank
Victorian state player - 1957, 1958, 1965 (8 games)
150 Heroes selection
Under 19 Best and Fairest - 1952

A brilliant half-back, recruited from the amateurs, Williams was promoted to the seniors a year after winning the Thirds Best and Fairest. 16 games in his rookie season seemed to indicate that he was comfortable at that level. The Demons won just 3 games that season, but by the next year were playing off in a Grand Final.

The rapid rise up the ladder was testament to the policy of Allan La Fontaine and Norm Smith of blooding youngsters in the disasterous 1951 and 1953 seasons. Williams, one of the first attacking half-back flankers, was one of the top finds of the Smith crop of youngsters. 16 others had debuted the same year as Williams, but his second year was something special as he played all 21 games and was already acknowledged as one of the most dashing half-backs in the competition.

Williams was once again ever present in 1955, and this time the Demons got the Grand Final right. He had been one of the major contributors for the year, with his long kicking making many chances for the midfielders and forwards to convert.

In 1956 he missed his first games in two years, a fortnight mid-season, but returned to play in another premiership victory. 1957 was even better with 21 games and, inevitably in that era, another premiership. The next year Williams finished second in the Best and Fairest but the Demons were shocked by Collingwood in the Grand Final.

After a superb 1959 season, Williams was approached by representatives of West Perth shortly before the Grand Final. The Demons hierachy found out and dropped Williams to the bench. He was so incensed at being left out of the starting 18 that he signed with West Perth.

Williams had been forced to fight for a clearance, with the Demons initially refusing to let him go. It was only the fourth application that Melbourne accepted just weeks before the WAFL season started. Reflecting in later years Williams said it was the silliest move he ever made, but at the time he made the best of the move. In 1961 he played in the WA's team that beat Victoria in the state carnival.

By 1963 he was back in Victoria as coach of country side Sale, but decided to have another crack at League football and although Melbourne officials tried to shunt him to another coaching position he returned triumphantly to be part of the 1964 flag side.

He was still going strong in 1968 at the age of 32, but a knee injury at the Lake Oval ended his VFL career. He returned later in that year to play for VFA side Prahran, and in 1969 coached the South Melbourne Under 19's under his old mentor Norm Smith.

In 2000 Williams was named on the half back flank of the Melbourne Team of the Century.