Rick Davies (footballer)

Rick Davies (born Evan Rick Davies, 8 April 1952) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Sturt and South Adelaide in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) and Hawthorn in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Nicknamed the "Jumbo Prince", Davies played a total of 390 games throughout his career (317 for Sturt, 33 for South Adelaide, 20 for Hawthorn, and 20 State Games for South Australia. Though not tall for a ruckman at only 188 cm (6'1"), Davies was known for his strong marking and body strength which he used to great effect against opponents who were often taller and heavier than him.

Rick Davies' senior career began with Sturt in 1970 at age 18. He went on to be named as Sturt’s best and fairest player in a record seven of the eight seasons he played for the Double Blues. One of Davies' most noteworthy performances was his dominant display in the 1976 Grand Final victory against Port Adelaide. Davies was judged best on ground on the day when the all-time SANFL record attendance was set when 66,897 fans crammed into Football Park.

In 1981 Davies joined Hawthorn in the VFL. Changes to rules for rucking contests disadvantaged shorter ruckman, and Davies mostly played in the forward pocket, kicking 37 goals. He returned to Sturt in 1982 and was their leading goal kicker for the next three seasons.

In 1983 Davies kicked an SANFL record 151 goals for the season (later beaten in 1990 by Scott Hodges of Port Adelaide who kicked 153), which included 11 goals in a 114-point win over Port Adelaide at the Unley Oval, and a club record 15 against West Adelaide in round eight at Football Park (this would be only one goal shy of Football Park’s all-time record of 16 goals in a match by Woodville’s John Roberts in 1976). Davies would play his last Grand Final for Sturt later in the 1983 season when the Double Blues went down to West Adelaide. After averaging over 6 goals per game in 1983, Davies was restricted by Tony Burgess to only two in the Grand Final, with his first in the 3rd quarter making him the first player to ever kick 150 goals in a SANFL season, beating Tim Evans’ record of 146 from 1980.