| Harry Vallence | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Henry Francis Vallence | ||
| Nickname | Soapy | ||
| Born | 4 June 1905 Bacchus Marsh, Victoria | ||
| Died | 25 July 1991(1991-07-25) (aged 86) | ||
| Original team | Bacchus Marsh (BFL) | ||
| Height | 183 cm (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Weight | 80 kg (176 lb) | ||
| Position | Full forward | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1926–1938 | Carlton | 204 (722) | |
| 1939-1941 | Williamstown | 61 (366) | |
| 1945-1946 | Brighton | 21 (88) | |
| Total | 286 (1076) | ||
| Representative team honours | |||
| Years | Team | Games (Goals) | |
| Victoria | 4 (17) | ||
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1938. | |||
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
| Sources:AFL Tables,AustralianFootball.com | |||
Henry Francis "Soapy" Vallence (4 June 1905 – 25 July 1991) was a championAustralian rules footballer in theVictorian Football League (VFL) and theVictorian Football Association (VFA). He played at full-forward for the VFL'sCarlton Football Club in the 1930s, and in the 1940s for the VFA'sWilliamstown andBrighton Football Clubs.
The son of Michael Vallence and Mary Ann Vallence, née Pattinson,[1] Henry Francis Vallence was born inBacchus Marsh, Victoria, on 4 June 1905.
He married Lorna Josephine Bliss (1915–1996) on 17 June 1940.[2]
Originally fromBacchus Marsh, in 1926 he came to Carlton as a half-forward. He soon moved to full-forward, where he became known for his safe hands and mighty kick. He kicked 11 goals in a match on four occasions—twice in finals.
In 1937, he left Carlton to play withWilliamstown Football Club in theVictorian Football Association as captain-coach. His dispute with Carlton arising when he returned from representingVictoria in an interstate match to find himself selected at centre half-back in the seconds' grade.
He was lured back to Carlton for the1938 season, helping to secure theBlues' first premiership in 23 years.
Vallence returned again to Williamstown in 1939, this time playing under the Association'sthrow-pass rules adopted in 1938. In 1939, Vallence kicked 133 goals and helped Williamstown to a premiership, and he kicked another 111 goals in 1940. On 24 May 1941, Vallence achieved two significant milestones: he kicked a career-high twenty goals againstSandringham and brought up his 1000th career goal across both the League and Association.[3] His career with Williamstown ended after 1941, when the competition went into recess during World War II.
He was captain-coach of the Carlton Reserves for three seasons (1942–1944).[4]
Vallence resumed playing after World War II as the captain-coach atBrighton, where he played his last game in 1946 (kicking 11 goals).[5][6]
Vallence played 204 games and kicked 722 goals for Carlton in his career; the latter was a club record until broken byStephen Kernahan in 1997. He scored a further 337 goals for Williamstown, 88 for Brighton, and 19 in representative games for Victoria, for a career total of 1166 goals.
He died on 25 July 1991 ofAlzheimer's disease inGeelong Hospital.
In 1996, Vallence was inducted into theAustralian Football Hall of Fame.
AFL: Hall of Fame]
