Colin Campbell (sportsman, born 1872)

For the Collingwood player, see Colin Campbell (footballer, born 1918).

Colin Mansfield Campbell (13 August 1872 – 3 April 1907) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and a first-class cricketer, representing Tasmania.

Colin Campbell
Personal information
Full name	Colin Mansfield Campbell
Date of birth	13 August 1872
Place of birth	Cressy, Tasmania
Date of death	3 April 1907(1907-04-03) (aged 34)
Place of death	Winlaton, England
Debut	Semi Final, 1897, Essendon vs. Geelong, at Corio Oval
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
1897–1899	Essendon	12 (4)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1899.
Career highlights
Essendon (VFA): Vice-captain 1893 VFA premiership player: 1891, 1892, 1893, 1894 VFL premiership player: 1897
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Family

The youngest son of Donald Campbell (1833–1907),^[1] and his second wife, Elizabeth Campbell (1825–1910), née Brumby,^[2] Colin Mansfield Campbell was born at Cressy, Tasmania on 13 August 1872.

Education

Educated at Horton College, Ross, Tasmania,^[3] he commenced his medical studies medicine at Queen's College at the University of Melbourne in 1891,^[4] and completed them in Scotland.

In 1903 he qualified for the Scottish Triple Conjoint Diploma; and, in so doing, he gained the following qualifications:

• Licentiate of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (L.R.C.P. Edin.).
• Licentiate of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (L.R.C.P. Edin.).
• Licentiate of the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow (L.F.P.S. Glas.).

Football

He attracted the Essendon (then VFA) club's attention during Essendon's 1890 Tasmanian tour match against a combined North-Eastern Football team.^[5] Immediately he arrived in Melbourne to commence his medical studies,^[6] he began his career with Essendon, kicking a goal, and one of its best players, in the first match of the 1891 season, against Footscray, on 2 May 1891.^[7]

Campbell played for Essendon in the Victorian Football Association (VFA) from 1891 to 1896, was its vice-captain in 1893, and was a member of its four premiership sides.^[8][9]

Although not playing at all during the home-and-away season, he played for Essendon (VFL) in the first two matches of the three-match inaugural VFL finals series on 21 August (against Geelong) at the Corio Oval,^[10] on 28 August 1897 (against Collingwood) at the MCG.^[11] He was unavailable for the third and final match, on 4 September 1897 (against Melbourne) at the Lake Oval, due to illness.^[12][13] On the basis of the team's victories in the round-robin competition, and because no Grand Final was needed, Essendon was awarded the 1897 premiership;^[14] and, so, due to the round-robin nature of the contest, Campbell was (and still is) legitimately recognized as "a premiership player".

He also played in 1898 and 1899,^[15] including the (losing) 1898 VFL Grand Final, in which he played at centre half-forward.^[16]

Cricket

Also in 1897, Campbell represented Tasmania in a first-class cricket match against Victoria at the North Tasmania Cricket Association Ground. He was dismissed in both innings by another debutant in James Giller, for scores of 0 and 17.^[17]

Whilst in England he played rugby and cricket, scoring over 1000 runs in a season for the Ryton Cricket Club.^[18]

Death

He died in 1907 of pneumonia, whilst working and living in Winlaton, England.^[19][20][21]

See also

• List of Tasmanian representative cricketers