Richmond has inducted four more Club greats into its Hall of Fame.
Ian Wilson, Neil Balme, Mark Lee and Ray Martin joined fellow Richmond greats including Neville Crowe, Kevin Bartlett, Francis Bourke, Jack Dyer, Royce Hart and Dale Weightman today at the 2010 Season Launch.
The quartet represent different eras in Richmond history, and each made a significant contribution to the Club’s rich history.
Below, Tony Greenberg gives a brief description of each new Hall of Fame member:
RAY MARTIN
Born: November 18, 1909
Height: 173cm
Playing weight: 73kg
Recruited from: West Hawthorn Amateurs
Guernsey number: No. 7
Games (1930 & 1932-40): 159
Goals: 135
Honors at RFC: Dual premiership player (1932 & 1934); dual Best and Fairest winner (1934 & 1935); RFC Life Member in 1940
John Raymond Martin made up the third part of one of the most formidable first ruck combinations in league football history.
Alongside powerhouse Richmond big men Percy Bentley and Jack Dyer, the 173cm and 73kg Martin carved out an illustrious career as the Tigers’ No. 1 rover throughout the Club’s golden era of the 1930s.
Ray Martin, as he was known, combined a fearless desire to win the ball with slick skills. He set up numerous opportunities for teammates with his superb disposal and was always dangerous around goals.
IAN WILSON
Born: May 11, 1934
RFC committee member: 1967-1968
RFC reserve grade manager: 1967-1968
RFC vice-president: 1969-1973
RFC president: 1974-1985
Premierships as RFC president: 1974 & 1980
RFC life member: 1975
In so many ways, Ian Wilson’s reign as Richmond president was the embodiment of the Tigers’ stirring theme song.
With the man affectionately known as “Octa” at the helm, the Tigers were a “fighting fury” when it came to standing up to the powers-that-be at the then VFL headquarters. Along with his old Geelong Grammar schoolmate, Graeme Richmond, Wilson waged war with the league’s hierarchy on a regular basis - all in the best interests of the Tigers - and, more often than not, emerged victorious.
NEIL BALME
Born: January 15, 1952
Height: 193cm
Playing weight: 95.5kg
Recruited from: Subiaco (WA)
Guernsey number: No. 21
Games (1970-79): 159
Goals: 229
Honors at RFC: Dual premiership player (1973 & 1974); two-time winner of Club’s Leading Goalkicker award (equal in 1972, 55 goals & 1973, 34 goals); Life Member in 1979
Neil Balme’s playing career with Richmond is commonly remembered for the fear that he struck in the hearts and minds of opposition defenders due to his robust, raw aggression.
Balme worked his way through the ranks at Richmond and made his senior debut in Round 20 of the 1970 season, against North Melbourne at Arden Street, booting four goals in a big Tiger win. The following season he established himself as a senior regular, and, from that point on, his league career flourished.
Balme was Richmond’s vice-captain in 1976, ran second in the Best and Fairest in 1977, and earned a reputation along the way as a big-occasion specialist.
MARK LEE
Born: March 29, 1959
Height: 199cm
Playing weight: 95.5kg
Recruited from: Mildura
Guernsey number: No. 41 & No. 1
Games (1977-91): 233
Goals: 94
Honors at RFC: Member of Richmond’s 1980 premiership side; Club captain 1985-87; Best and Fairest winner in 1984; Life Member in 1986
Mark Lee was Richmond’s No. 1 ruckman for more than a decade and, during that time, he lived up to his nickname, ‘The General’, in marshalling the Tiger troops into on-field battle, and protecting his smaller teammates.
Lee was a product of the Tigers’ country zone, joining the Club from Mildura, where he had played senior football at age 16. He spent 1976 in the under-19s at Richmond, before graduating into senior company late in the 1977 season.
He formed an excellent ruckman/rover partnership with his fellow “Milduraite”, Dale ‘The Flea’ Weightman, over many seasons, the pair ensuring the Tigers had one of the best on-ball brigades in the business.
