Len Mortimer
1906-1915
153 games
289 goals
Leading Goalkicker 1906, 1907, 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1912
Premiership Player 1909

At the 1905 South Melbourne annual meeting, club president Henry Skinner expressed his disappointment at the team's run of underwhelming seasons since competing in the 1899 VFL Grand Final. He declared, "Next season, players who did not attend strictly to their training would be left out of the team." Advocating for a fitter, younger team, he believed that "there was not another club in the metropolis with a better class of young fellows."

While the youth policy looked promising, they needed a spearhead to increase their goalscoring power. That season, Len Mortimer claimed the VFA's leading goalkicker award with 48 goals, the first time a Williamstown player had earned the honour. In a solid financial position, South approached Mortimer to join them ahead of the 1906 VFL season.

Born in Footscray and residing in Newport, Mortimer earned the nickname 'Mother' for the way in which he cradled the ball – like a baby – after taking a mark. Until the introduction of North Melbourne and Footscray to the League, the Williamstown district was allotted as South Melbourne territory. As a result, the red and whites boasted a membership of hundreds of Williamstown residents.

Fellow Swans Hall of Famer and Yarraville product Mark Tandy idolised Mortimer. He wanted to emulate his career progression from being a local VFA star to mixing it with the best in the VFL. Mortimer's arrival brought similar excitement to his new club, with South's membership tally surpassing any previous total. Hopes were high for an improved 1906 season.

However, the Southerners finished in fifth place, disappointed in their efforts. After kicking 11 goals in his first practice match, Mortimer won South's leading goalkicker award with 24 majors in his debut season at the club. Though his first place-kick attempt for South thundered straight into the man on the mark, he was a fine exponent of that method, and he'd go on to top the club's goalkicking in each of his first seven seasons at the Lake Oval.

During the 1906 season, South travelled to New South Wales to play a series of exhibition matches. According to The Record, "The team had a trip to Sydney during the season, and the president could say with pride that no team that had ever visited NSW had left with a better record or were more popular."

Mortimer was enjoying his time at South. A keen cricketer, he played for the South Melbourne Football Eleven that claimed the Victorian Junior Cricket Association premiership in the 1906/07 season. The club held a 'smoke night' in their honour, and Mr Skinner presented all victorious team members with a commemorative gold medal. In one match, Mortimer claimed bowling figures of 8/13.

Mortimer kicked five of the team's nine goals in their opening win of 1907, and with 37 goals for the year, he led South's charge towards a finals berth, finishing in second place after the home and away season. South defeated Collingwood by 34 points to win a place in the Grand Final against Carlton.

The match was close, and The Herald reported: "South was finishing like heroes". Unfortunately, Mortimer's missed shot at goal late in the final quarter saw Carlton claim the premiership by five points. After the match, South captain Bill Dolphin exclaimed, "All our fellows were pretty confident that we would make a good tussle of it, and I fancy we all thought we were going to win."

Despite the loss, their vastly improved runners-up finish was warmly received. Three weeks after the Grand Final, the club entertained 300 guests at the South Melbourne Town Hall. The Record reported, "The hall was gaily decorated with flags, and the visitors were seated at tables decorated with red and white flowers, and amply supplied with refreshments."

Mortimer kicked 40 goals in 1908, but after harbouring great ambition, South missed the finals following an inconsistent year, finishing fifth. Ahead of the 1909 campaign, South installed clever rover Charlie Ricketts as its first official captain-coach. Ricketts joined South from Richmond the same year as Mortimer crossed from Williamstown, and the pair would have a substantial say in the team's impending fortunes.

Now considered the most accurate marksman in the League, Mortimer provided Ricketts with a strong marking target to complement the team's quicker ball movement. He kicked a career-high 50 goals, and South Melbourne finished the season on top of the VFL ladder. Across the 1907-1909 seasons, Mortimer finished second on the League’s goalkicking list each year.

South Melbourne faced Collingwood in the semi-final, and The Herald reported, "All roads led to the Melbourne Cricket Ground. People on foot swarmed there. Tens of thousands poured down in train and tram, in motor and cab, and, in fact, every kind of wheeled vehicle bore a human burden." Mortimer kicked three goals in front of 35,000 fans, and South prevailed by 21 points.

Possessing pace, height, strength and superb team skills, South opposed triple premier Carlton in the 1909 Grand Final. The Blues had defeated the Southerners in the previous week's final, and as minor premier, South held the right to challenge for a rematch, which they did. On a breezy Melbourne spring day, Mortimer found accuracy difficult, but after a tense finish, South Melbourne claimed its first VFL premiership by two points.

Red and white supporters could hardly contain themselves, and in The Australasian, 'Markwell' reported, "The excitement that prevailed among the 37,000 spectators was indescribable. The playing ground was rushed the moment the first tinkle was heard, and a surging multitude of the madly-excited barrackers bore the victors shoulder high from the field. Such a scene of delirious enthusiasm had never before been witnessed at the finish of a football match in Melbourne."

Incredibly, 8,000 people attended the South Melbourne Football Club annual meeting in 1910, with interest in club affairs at an all-time high. Unfortunately, premiership-winning captain-coach Ricketts only appeared once that season before being struck down with a severe illness, and in a season tainted with bribery and match-fixing allegations, South finished third.

As Mortimer's game matured, he developed an ability to evade oncoming tacklers through a combination of ducking, dodging and weaving. After a frustrating 1910 season, he returned to form in 1911, kicking 44 goals as South again claimed third place. Ricketts returned as captain-coach ahead of the 1912 season, bringing a renewed sense of optimism.

That year, the League introduced the numbering of players' guernseys, with Mortimer lining up in South's number 15. He kicked 40 goals in another impressive season, and the Southerners topped the table before losing the Grand Final to Essendon by 14 points. In 1913, under Vic Belcher's leadership, Mortimer adapted to a new role within a more flexible forward line, with his run of seven consecutive leading goalkicker awards brought to an end. He did, however, represent the VFL against a combined Bendigo team.

The final seasons of Mortimer's career were heavily affected by injury. A lacerated hand and a head injury that required him to wear a helmet in each subsequent appearance hampered his ability to get on the field consistently. After the 1915 season, he retired as South Melbourne's first great full-forward. His 1909 tally of 50 goals stood as the club record until fellow Swans Hall of Famer Ted Johnson kicked 60 in 1924.

Mortimer regularly attended South Melbourne matches in retirement and maintained a close affinity with the club until he passed away at the age of 76 in 1962.