1966 premiership player Verdun Howell has been inducted into the Tasmanian sporting Hall of Fame.
The 1959 Brownlow medallist was honoured at a ceremony on Tuesday and became the fourth St Kilda player and ninth VFL/AFL player included in the illustrious collection of sports people.
Howell visited Linen House Centre two weeks ago for the first time and was taken aback by the quality of the training facility.
“What’s great is that every single player has the best opportunity to succeed with facilities like this,” the 77-year-old told SAINTS.com.au. “It’s very impressive.”
It’s been a rewarding journey for Howell, who debuted for St Kilda in 1958 as a forward flanker, before jointly winning the 1959 Brownlow medal with Bob Skilton as a full-back.
While Skilton pipped him on the night due to the now defunct count-back system, Howell was awarded the Brownlow retrospectively 30 years later. The nine-time Victorian representative said it’s unlikely a key position player will ever win the award again.
“When I first joined St Kilda, we were on the bottom of the ladder and I had a hell of a lot of work to do every Saturday with the ball in defence all the time. As the team got better, I got less of the ball. It’s just a midfielder’s award now.”
Howell grew up in Tasmania, lived in Melbourne throughout his VFL career, and then moved to Western Australia where he coached in the WAFL.
Now living in Perth, Howell keeps a close eye on the Saints and fondly remembers his decade at the club, especially that unforgettable day in September 1966.
“It all began in 1965 when we were beaten soundly by Essendon and we carried that remorse into the 66 year. We were better prepared as a result but there were still things like kicking that we had to do better,” he said.
Four Tasmanians played in the Saints only flag: Baldock, Stewart, Howell and John Bingley – but it could have easily been three
“One of the Carlton boys fixed me up a couple of weeks out from finals and broke my jaw in two places. It was touch and go whether I was going to make it or not but they put a plate on it and wired my teeth together which made it a bit awkward. I didn’t have a great influence on the game."
He joins fellow Saints Darrel Baldock, Roy Cazaly and Ian Stewart in the Tasmanian Hall of Fame.
