Peter McConville
Peter will be appearing at our Luncheon celebrating the 30th anniversary of the 1981 Premiership. Tickets are still available CLICK HERE to secure yours.
Career : 1978 – 1985
Debut : Round 1, 1978 vs Richmond, aged 19 years, 227 days
Carlton Player No. 872
Games : 140
Goals : 157
Last Game: Elimination Final, 1985 vs North Melbourne, aged 27 years, 21 days
Guernsey No. 33
Height : 183 cm ( 6 ft. 0 in.)
Weight : 85.5 kg (13 stone, 7 lbs.)
DOB : August 17, 1958
Premiership Player 1979, 1981, 1982.
Peter James McConville holds a special place in the annals of the Carlton Football Club. Widely regarded for his consistency and his versatility, the powerful barrel-chested utility was a key factor in Carlton’s golden run of three Premierships in four years from 1979 to 1982.
McConville was recruited to the Blues from Golden Square – part of our prolific Bendigo League zone – in 1978, along with fellow Blue Peter Fitzpatrick. Despite his family being keen Melbourne supporters, Peter was a Carlton devotee from a young age, after venturing down to the MCG to watch the Demons play the Blues. Carlton won the match that day, and the youngster’s heart. By his late teens, McConville was a promising full-forward who kicked 100 goals in 1977 with Golden Square – despite his grounding as a defender in his junior days at the club. The switch forward came during a Bendigo League representative game, when he lined on a forward flank and starred; providing the catalyst for Peter becoming such a versatile swing player in his days with the Blues.
McConville made his senior debut for Carlton in front of 80,000 hyped-up fans against Richmond at the MCG in round one of 1978. The Tigers crushed the Blues, but McConville impressed by kicking three goals, and was awarded Mark of the Day on Channel 7’s World of Sport the following day. At 185 cm and 85 kg, he was soon a solid part of the brilliant Carlton combination of that era. Initially played often as a half-back flanker, he quickly became the team’s Mr Fixit – the type who could be thrown forward or back without notice, and relied upon to do whatever was required. He was a wonderful mark for his size – so good in fact, that legendary North Melbourne and Hawthorn coach John Kennedy once commented that he was the best in the league. Capable in a key position, or as a ruck-rover pushing forward, his value was not lost on the Carlton match committee or its dedicated followers. Despite his relative lack of inches, he could match it with most tall key position players (forward or back) but was still nimble enough to play on the smaller, quicker types.
In eight seasons (1978 to 1985) wearing guernsey number 33, McConville played 140 games and kicked 157 goals. He was an excellent contributor in the 1979, 1981 and 1982 Premiership teams and represented Victoria in 1983. Unfortunately, in his one and only state game, he tore a knee cartilege and missed the remainder of the season, when he was in career-best form. It was later revealed that he had hurt the knee the previous Saturday in a club game, but carried it into the Big V clash and subsequently aggravated it further.
Simon Fletcher
Career: 1999-2003
Debut: Round 16, 1999 vs Essendon
1033rd Carlton Player
Games: 84
Goals: 30
Last Game: Round 22, 2003 vs North Melbourne
Guernsey No. 31
Height: 188cm
Weight: 74kg
DOB: 17 August, 1978
Simon Fletcher played 84 games for Carlton in between 1999 and 2003, before moving on to Richmond for the 2004 season. A good, solid player, Fletcher played a variety of roles in midfield and half back in Carlton’s finals teams of 1999, 2000 and 2001, before losing his place in the team as the Blues descended down the ladder in 2003.
Originally on the Geelong list, and a distant relative of former Carlton great and Premiership Player Jim Mooring, Fletcher was rookied by the Blues in 1998 and promoted in Round 16, 1999. He played every game from then until the Prelininary Final but was unfortunately dropped for the Grand Final. The thick, dark haired right footer could find the ball averaging 11 a game. In 2000, he would play all but one game, averaging about 14 possessions a game and as many as 26, in various flanker roles. He would follow that up with 20 games in 2001 and 19 in 2002.
At training one night in 2002 or 2003, Fletcher would win a competition for kicking a football directly into a green wheelie-bin from 45 metres away! No doubting his kicking was accurate.
Fletcher was given limited opportunity by incoming Coach Pagan in 2003, playing only 11 games in various roles. He had to wait until Round 8 to play his first senior game and was omitted for Round 10 but won a last minute reprieve following the late withdrawal of Scott Camporeale. He would take full advantage of this, gathering 26 possessions- the most of any Carlton player. This would keep him in the team for the next 5 games. He would return to the side in Round 20, again due to a late withdrawal and go on to play the final 3 games of the season but would then be delisted.