Doug Booth

Doug Booth
Booth in 2007
Personal information
Full name	Douglas George Booth
Date of birth	(1957-08-01) 1 August 1957 (age 67)
Original team(s)	East Brighton
Height	185 cm (6 ft 1 in)
Weight	85 kg (187 lb)
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
1976–1978, 1982	St Kilda	24 (4)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1982.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Douglas George Booth (born 1 August 1957) is an Australian academic and former Australian rules footballer who played with St Kilda in the Victorian Football League (VFL). He is dean of the School of Physical Education at the University of Otago. ^[1]

Football career

A recruit from East Brighton, Booth was part of a memorable win on his senior debut. ^{[2] [3]} Selected as one of St Kilda's reserves for their round 12 fixture against ladder leaders Hawthorn at Princes Park, Booth got his first taste of league football when he was called onto the field as a replacement Wayne Judson. ^[4] Early in the third quarter St Kilda trailed by 44 points, but were spurred by the sight of rover Paul Callery being knocked unconscious, and came back to upset Hawthorn with a 25-point win. ^[3] He had to wait until round 16 to make his next appearance, a win over Collingwood at Victoria Park, in which he contributed two goals. ^[5] By the end of his first year of VFL football he had played five games and he added just one more in the 1977 season, which was in the opening round. ^[6]

Booth, who wore the number 38, came back in the 1978 season as a regular member of the St Kilda side for the first time in his career. ^[6] The club had a strong start to the season, moving to second on the ladder after a win over Essendon in what was described as a spiteful round seven encounter. ^[7] During the game, Booth was one of three St Kilda players reported, but was cleared by the tribunal. ^{[8] [9]} His second visit to the tribunal, following St Kilda's round 11 loss to Carlton, resulted in a two-match suspension, for striking Greg Towns. ^{[10] [11]} This ended his run of 11 consecutive games. ^[6] He did not play any VFL football from 1979 to 1981, but returned in the 1982 VFL season to make four appearances. ^[6] In round two against Melbourne at the MCG, Booth suffered concussion and was required to spend the night in hospital. ^[12] His final appearance came in round 13, a record breaking loss to the Swans, when the club formerly known as South Melbourne amassed their highest ever score, 199 points. ^{[6] [13]}

He is often remembered for his actions during the second half of the Queen's Birthday clash against Collingwood in 1978 when he attempted to kick a stray dog that had wandered onto the field. ^{[14] [15]}

Booth was the winner of the Avis Grand Final Mile in 1978, in a time of 4:41, to win the $1000 prize. ^{[16] [17]} This long-distance event was the precursor to today's Grand Final Sprint, which began the following year. ^[18]

Academia

Booth, an alumnus of the University of Melbourne, was a postgraduate student and researcher in South Africa during the 1980s. ^[19] He undertook his research, into politics of economic underdevelopment under apartheid, at the Development Studies Unit in the University of Natal. ^[19] Under the supervision of Colin Tatz, Booth completed his PhD at Macquarie University's Politics Department. ^[19] His thesis, which was published in 1992, traced the history of the sports boycott in South Africa, titled The South African way of life a study in race, politics, and sport. ^[20] In 1994 he began lecturing at the University of Otago in New Zealand, on the history of sport. ^[19] He was at the University of Waikato from 2004 until 2007, when he returned to the University of Otago as the dean of the School of Physical Education. ^[19] Notable students of Booth include Katie Fitzpatrick. ^[21]

Bibliography

• The Race Game: Politics and Sport in South Africa (London, Frank Cass, 1998). ^[19]
• One-Eyed: A View of Australian Sport (co-author Colin Tatz) (Sydney, Allen & Unwin, 2000). ^[19]
• Australian Beach Cultures: The History of Sun, Sand and Surf (London, Frank Cass, 2002). ^[22]
• The Field: Truth and Fiction in Sport History (London, Routledge, 2005). ^[19]

References

1. Mercer, Phil (17 October 2013). "Australia's love of surfing making waves for small firms". BBC News . Retrieved 16 August 2015.
2. Holmesby, Luke (10 July 2013). "Vampires feast on Saints' knowledge". saints.com.au. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
3. McFarline, Peter (21 June 1976). "Paul down – Saints alive!". The Age . p. 28. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
4. "VFL ladder...scores". The Age . p. 28. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
5. "North Bid to Top VFL". Sydney Morning Herald . 18 July 1976. p. 37. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
6. "AFL Tables – Doug Booth – Games Played". AFL Tables. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
7. "Australian Football – Templeton's day out". Australian Football. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
8. "Baby Bombers hit a brick wall named St Kilda". The Advertiser . 21 July 2008. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
9. Grant, Trevor (16 May 1978). "Third Saint is cleared". The Age . p. 32. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
10. "Victorian Football League: N. Melbourne setting the pace again". The Canberra Times . 18 June 1978. p. 33. Retrieved 17 August 2015– via National Library of Australia.
11. "Booth Out". The Canberra Times . 20 June 1978. p. 1. Retrieved 17 August 2015– via National Library of Australia.
12. "Australian Football: Reportings, upsets in fiery round". The Canberra Times . 4 April 1982. p. 28. Retrieved 17 August 2015– via National Library of Australia.
13. Clarke, Simon (21 June 1982). "Swans hand out record thrashing". The Age . p. 30. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
14. Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2007). The Encyclopedia Of AFL Footballers. BAS Publishing. ISBN   9781920910785.
15. Fine, Mark (19 September 2011). "Footy List: Great animal invasions". Herald Sun . Retrieved 17 August 2015.
16. Rhettrospective (3 January 2025). 1978 VFL Grand Final Mile race - run at half time . Retrieved 3 January 2025– via YouTube.
17. "AFL Grand Final Sprint". Hard Ball Get. Archived from the original on 29 November 2014. Retrieved 17 August 2015.
18. Fact Sheet (AFL 2014 Round 10 ed.). Melbourne Cricket Club Library. 25 May 2014.
19. "Douglas Booth, School of Physical Education, University of Otago, New Zealand". University of Otago . Retrieved 17 August 2015.
20. Booth, Douglas (1992), The South African way of life a study in race, politics, and sport , retrieved 17 August 2015
21. Fitzpatrick, Katie (2010). Stop playing up! A critical ethnography of health, physical education and (sub)urban schooling (PhD thesis). Waikato Research Commons, University of Waikato. hdl:10289/4429.
22. Tovey, Josephine (27 February 2010). "Another Sydney cover-up – bathers are getting their gear on". The Sydney Morning Herald . Retrieved 17 August 2015.

External links

• Doug Booth's playing statistics from AFL Tables
• Doug Booth at AustralianFootball.com