Henry Purdy was inducted into the Swans Hall of Fame in 2025.

Henry Purdy
1886-1890; 1892; 1895-1901
196 games
Premiership Player 1888, 1889, 1890

Bio 

Known affectionately as ‘Harry’, Henry Purdy was regarded not only as a key pillar of the great South Melbourne teams of the VFA era but also a highly respected community contributor.

Hailing from Ballarat and the South Ballarat Football Club, Purdy joined teammate and fellow Swans Hall of Famer Dinny McKay in joining the Hillites ahead of the 1886 season. Peter ‘The Great’ Burns made the same decision a year earlier, and the trio formed a critical component in the red and whites’ ascent back to the game’s zenith.

Born the sixth of 10 children to hotelier parents William and Hannah Purdy in the central Victorian town of Learmonth in 1867, Harry quickly developed a thirst for Australia’s emerging football code.

Often described as a brilliant rover, Purdy first attracted attention when he featured for South Ballarat against the visiting Fitzroy team as a 16-year-old in 1884. After a string of consistent performances in 1885, Purdy made the move to Melbourne. A carpenter by trade, work was plentiful in the southern municipality, whose council consisted mainly of real estate developers and financiers.

One of Purdy’s first jobs was the construction of a new fence and some restorative work on the South Melbourne Cricket Ground grandstand. Recognised by South’s Ballarat brigade, they convinced him to join, too.

Once the 1886 season began, the young rover made an immediate impression. Incredibly, after just three games, Purdy gained selection in the Victorian team that defeated New South Wales in an inter-colonial match. Later in the year, a tribute in The Record declared, “Associated in the ruck with Burns, boring in and out with the precision of a piston-rod, was Harry Purdy, persistent as a terrier and marvellous in the crush.”

By September, South, the reigning premier, was undefeated. So, too, was Geelong. The premiership-deciding showdown became the most highly anticipated match in football history, with specially ordered trains arriving from all over Victoria, carrying thousands of visitors to South Melbourne. The day before the game, fans dug holes beneath the fence and claimed branches in the surrounding trees to view the match free of charge.

The crowd reflected the hype surrounding it. Varying reports place the attendance anywhere between 30,000 and 40,000 patrons, and Purdy’s handiwork came crashing down during the game as the creaking perimeter fence collapsed under immense pressure from the heaving masses.

Disappointingly for Purdy and his teammates, though, Geelong claimed victory and the flag, relegating South to a runners-up finish. In 1887, the Southerners finished third, with Purdy’s season described as being ‘top class’. In November of that year, The Australasian reported that an English football team planned to tour Australia in 1888.

In the third volume of Origins of Australian Football: Victoria’s Early History, Mark Pennings described the club’s 1888 prospects: “South gathered an imposing list of players with strength, skill and above all, power. This talented group of players was supported by state-of-the-art training methods and health insurance to cover any costs associated with football injuries.”

In June 1888, the undefeated South Melbourne played the touring Englishmen. The Governor of Victoria watched on as the locals proved — understandably — far too strong for the novice visitors. Purdy, sporting his trademark bold, bushy moustache, played with typical tenacity, named one of South’s best.

South Melbourne claimed its third, and Purdy’s first, premiership following 15 wins, two losses, and two draws. Purdy and his fellow Southerners were awarded special, commemorative blue premiership caps at the club’s annual meeting. The majority of this team received another premiership cap the following year, following an equally impressive 1889 season.

In August 1890, a feature article in The Sportsman, titled ‘Harry Purdy: A Prominent Footballer’, paid tribute to the South man’s outstanding ability: “Is there one who follows the fortunes of football and does not know Purdy, the South Melbourne footballer? We think not.”

“His skill at the great game has earned for him a distinction, and South Melbournites have been heard to say, ‘Purdy is one of our best.’ He shines as a ‘follower’ and combines all the necessary qualifications for a tip-top player — litheness, activity and endurance. He is always on the ball and is unsurpassed by any in his special branch of the game.

Just weeks later, Purdy became a triple-premiership player as South Melbourne stormed to the 1890 flag — its third in succession. For captain ‘Sonny’ Elms, it was his fifth. Pennings stated, “These champions were also dedicated trainers and responded well to Elms’ strog leadership. These fine individuals also made a brilliant ‘team’, and this team ethic reached its apogee in 1890.”

Now regarded as one of the VFA’s finest footballers, Purdy’s career looked all but over following a serious knee injury sustained in a charity match late that year. At one point, doctors recommended amputation of the leg.

But, according to The Record, “The patient would not consent and went to Ballarat on a visit. Here, a curious thing occurred. An old man came to him and asked if Purdy would try some of his special liniment on the injured limb. Mr. Purdy agreed, with the result that the leg was saved, and he was shortly after again figuring prominently in the ranks of the South Melbourne eighteen with all his old dash and vim.”

Purdy returned for the 1892 season but then didn’t feature again until 1895. Also, that year, he married Louise Sheeley at St Luke’s Church in South Melbourne. Although the shine of South Melbourne’s golden era had faded, Purdy remained a highly valued player.

In 1897, Purdy featured in South Melbourne’s first VFL match following the formation of the new League. Two years later, South made a surprising run to reach its first VFL Grand Final — a one-point loss to Fitzroy — but Purdy was unavailable to play due to prior travel commitments.

As a sign of its immense admiration, the club held a testimonial night for Purdy at the Myrtle Hotel in 1898. South Melbourne Football Club patron Mr James Aitken said, “A man of such sterling qualities, who played such a gentlemanly game as Mr Purdy, could not help shining out conspicuously.”

In response to the flowing tributes, Purdy told the gathering, “Throughout my lengthy connection with the club, extending over 15 years, I have striven unselfishly to uphold the laurels of South Melbourne with honour, and I am very proud to know that I can now look around and feel I possess the esteem of my old friends.”

At the turn of the century, Purdy followed in his parents’ footsteps, becoming the proprietor of the Britannia Hotel in South Melbourne. A few years later, after playing his final match in 1901, Purdy took possession of the Robert Burns Hotel, where he remained for 20 years.

Harry and Louise lovingly raised their daughter, Rose, and son, Harry, in South Melbourne, with Harry Jr. playing nine senior games in red and white. From 1901 to 1903, Purdy served as secretary of the South Melbourne Football Club and, for many years afterwards, as a committee member.

On 26 November 1922, Purdy died, aged 54, following a lingering illness. The funeral procession, which departed from his Robert Burns Hotel and headed towards the Brighton cemetery, was acknowledged as one of the largest in South Melbourne’s history.

In The Record, Purdy’s obituary highlighted his popularity: “Purdy, though a small man physically, was more like a terrier on the field. He was possessed of wonderful stamina, and the biggest part of him was his heart, for he never knew what defeat meant.”

“In another sense, too, his largeness of heart was proverbial — ever open to the call of charity, he never turned a deaf ear to help an unfortunate brother or sister.