Albert Thurgood
| Albert Thurgood | |||
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| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Albert John Thurgood | ||
| Date of birth | 11 January 1874 | ||
| Place of birth | North Melbourne, Victoria | ||
| Date of death | 8 May 1927 (aged 53) | ||
| Place of death | Malvern, Victoria | ||
| Height | 183 cm (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Weight | 76 kg (168 lb) | ||
| Position(s) | Centre half-forward | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1892–1894 | Essendon (VFA) | 57 (183) | |
| 1895–1897 | Fremantle (WAFA) | 48 (128) | |
| 1899–1902 | Essendon (VFL) | 38 (79) | |
| 1906 | Essendon (VFL) | 8 (10) | |
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1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1906.
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| Career highlights | |||
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| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Albert John "The Great" Thurgood (11 January 1874 – 8 May 1927) was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football Association (VFA), Victorian Football League (VFL) and the Western Australian Football Association (WAFA).
He is considered one of the great champion players of the VFA and VFL, described as "an ideal footballer." He usually played at centre-half-forward, but his versatility enabled him to be switched to any position on the ground.
Born on 11 January 1874 at Errol Street, North Melbourne, to John Thurgood, a builder and Amelia, née Buckland. After his education at Brighton Grammar School, he joined the Essendon Football Club in the Victorian Football Association (VFA).
Thurgood played for Essendon in the VFA (1892–94) and played in three of its four successive premierships (1891–94).
At six feet tall (183 cm) and twelve stone (76.2 kg), Thurgood possessed qualities that made him a versatile key position player: he was extraordinarily fast, a superb mark, and very nimble and agile.
His greatest asset was his kicking. Usually playing at centre half-forward, he could regularly kick distances up to 65-70 yards and beyond.
Thurgood kicked 64 goals in 1893 and 63 in 1894, and in an 1893 game against Richmond scored twelve of Essendon's fourteen goals, extraordinary feats giving the low scoring of the era. He played 57 VFA games for Essendon and kicked 183 goals.
In 1895 he left Essendon to seek work in Western Australia and played for the Fremantle Football Club (not connected to the current club of the same name) in the Western Australian Football Association (WAFA). During his stint there he topped the WAFA goal kicking list on three consecutive occasions between 1895 and 1897, helping the side lift premierships in the first two of those years.
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