Bob Pratt
Encyclopedia
Harold Robert "Bob" Pratt (31 August 1912 – 6 January 2001) was a former Australian rules football
er from Mitcham, Victoria
.
Pratt played with South Melbourne Football Club
in the Victorian Football League
(VFL) from 1930
–1939
and again in 1946
, and with the Coburg Football Club in the Victorian Football Association
from 1940 to 1941. Considered "arguably the best full-forward
in the history of Australian rules", he was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame
with Legend status in 1996.
Known for spectacular
diving and high flying marks, he topped the club's goalkicking for the first time in 1932
with 71 goals and for the next three seasons passed 100 goals. His total of 150 goals in 1934
was a VFL/AFL record haul and is now shared with Peter Hudson
who equalled it in 1971
. The tally included 15 goals in a single game, one of eight times that he would kick 10 goals in a game.
, and was known as "Bob" to avoid confusion with his father.
Playing as a junior for local club Mitcham, Pratt attracted the attention of rival VFL clubs South Melbourne and Hawthorn
. Whilst Hawthorn lost interest after a poor performance by Pratt in a match, South Melbourne signed him following a recommendation from the Mitcham coach.
He played in the forward pocket
for the Second XVIII in the 1929 First Semi-Final against Essendon, and was one of the best players for South Melbourne. He was replaced in the team for the preliminary final match against Geelong by Jack Richardson, most likely because Richardson had played 10 senior matches that year, rather than due to any disappointment in Pratt's performance (it was the prevailing wisdom that it was always better to play experienced senior players in Second XVIII finals matches); Geelong won the match.
at South Melbourne's home ground, Lake Oval
. Although South Melbourne lost the match by 25 points, Pratt kicked four goals, and was considered to be South Melbourne's best player on the day.
He played the entire season of 18 Home and Away matches, kicking 43 goals for the season — his best score was five goals in Round 10 against Fitzroy
– and was second on South Melbourne's goalkicking list to the full-forward, Austin Robertson.
He was considered to have "immense promise".
Pratt topped South Melbourne's goalkicking for the first time in 1932
with 71 goals, fifty of them coming by Round Nine. His tally broke the previous record for goals scored in a season by a South Melbourne player, held by Ted Johnson
, who kicked 60 goals in the 1924
, 1925
and 1928
seasons.
On 2 July 1932, in the round nine match against Fitzroy, playing at full-forward, Pratt kicked 7 goals (The Argus noted that “Pratt was keen and accurate [up] forward”, whilst The Age remarked on Pratt’s “extraordinary marking and kicking) in a more accurate South Melbourne’s 12.10 (82) win over Fitzroy 10.15 (75). After the match, Pratt was reported by goal umpire Greenwood and boundary umpire Treloar for striking Fitzroy’s back-pocket Frank Curcio
in the back, near the right kidney, in the third quarter. At the VFL tribunal hearing on Thursday, 7 July 1932, the charge against Pratt was not sustained (“Curcio said that he had no recollection of having been struck”).
This was the only occasion that Pratt was reported in his entire VFL career.
, recruiting Laurie Nash
and Frank Davies from Tasmania
, Wilbur Harris
and Ossie Bertram
from South Australia and Western Australians Jim O'Meara
and John Bowe
.
After a slow start, the team melded well together to win the 1933 premiership side. Pratt, who kicked 109 goals for the season from eighteen matches, was "idolised by all South fans ... (who) flocked to the Lake Oval and other grounds to see him action." Pratt kicked three goals in the grand final
to overtake Collingwood
's Gordon Coventry
as the VFL's leading goalkicker for the season.
. At the age of just 20, Pratt had already become a fan favourite at South Melbourne. Local newspaper the South Melbourne Record wrote of his performances "Nothing gave South fans greater delight than to see Pratt soaring above the packs. The fruits of victory would not taste so sweet if Pratt failed to reap a bag of half a dozen majors."
Pratt kicked 15 goals 3 behinds (eight of his goals were kicked in something like ten minutes) in round three against Essendon
, a VFL record that would stand until 1949. He also kicked a bag of 12 against Footscray (including seven in a quarter) and 11 against Carlton
and Essendon. Pratt reached 100 goals for the season in the third quarter of the Round 13 match against Carlton, the least number of games ever required to reach 100 goals in a season.
In a match against Carlton, Pratt kicked eight goals in the third quarter, which is one of the highest amount of goals kicked in a quarter, by an individual in the VFL.
South Melbourne dominated the competition through the season and were considered the clear favourite to win the 1934 premiership. However, in the Grand Final
, South were outplayed by Richmond
, losing by 39 points, with Pratt kicking two goals to take his season tally to 150 goals. Post-match rumours of South Melbourne players accepting bribes to play poorly were so strong that Pratt and team mate Peter Reville
confronted several players they suspected of playing poorly.
His total of 150 goals in 1934
was a VFL/AFL record haul and is now shared with Peter Hudson
who equalled it in 1971
.
In addition to his 150 goals, Pratt kicked 94 points, which is still the record for the most number of behinds kicked in a season (Pratt is also second on the second on this list, having kicked 93 points in 1933).
Pratt had his best Brownlow Medal
result in 1934
, polling 14 votes to finish eighth, six votes behind winner, Essendon
's Dick Reynolds
. For all of this, Pratt did not win South Melbourne's Best and Fairest Award (won by Terry Brain
). When Pratt asked a committee member why, he was given the response "You're very spectacular but not very effective." He did, however, receive the equivalent of A$100 from South Melbourne in recognition of his feat.
, kicking 103 goals for the year and, for the third season in a row, being the VFL Leading Goalkicker (an outstanding feat, given that his team mates Roy Moore
and Laurie Nash
scored 52 and 51 goals respectively for the 1935 season as well).
Following a convincing win in the second-semi final against Collingwood, when Pratt kicked six goals, South Melbourne were again considered favourite to win the premiership. However, Pratt missed the 1935 VFL Grand Final
through bizarre circumstances. On the Thursday night prior to the Grand Final he was clipped by a truck carrying five tonnes of bricks moments after he stepped off a tram on High Street, Prahran
. Pratt injured an ankle and lacerated both legs due to the accident and was unable to play.
In response to the accident, the South Melbourne Record wrote
The truck driver, a South Melbourne supporter, offered Pratt a packet of cigarettes as a way of apology.
In Pratt's absence Collingwood won the Grand Final by 20 points.
Pratt's son Bob Pratt, Jr.
was born on 24 March 1936, and Pratt suddenly found himself unemployed when the newspaper he worked for, The Star, unexpectedly folded.
Annoyed at what he considered unfair treatment by club management towards him compared to interstate recruits, Pratt first sought to leave South Melbourne for another club in June 1936, stating that he was unemployed and believed another club could find him employment. Pratt relented when local politician Robert Williams MLC found him a job in a brewery.
Perhaps driven by his financial circumstances, Pratt was the only South Melbourne player to play in every senior game in 1936. The South Melbourne players, including Pratt, had suffered a large number of injuries over the season, and the (astounding in 1936) number of 39 different men played at least one senior game that season: and, "of [that 39] Bob Pratt is the only one who has played in every engagement, and on occasions he has had to nurse injuries certain to have kept most other players out of the game".
In the first round match against Melbourne, Pratt was well held by his opponent, Harry Long
, who was the best Melbourne player on the day. Pratt kicked 5 goals and 5 behinds for the match; his first goal for the day came from an "amazing mark" which he took "almost on the goal line" ("[Pratt] went from behind the pack with a tremendous leap and took the ball in his finger-tips to score an easy goal"). That first goal of the 1936 season brought his VFL career total to 500 goals (in 106 matches).
for twelve goals (leading him to consider retirement on a number of occasions).
Pratt walked out on South Melbourne after round eight, 1937, believing club officials considered him part of the furniture and did not see it necessary to offer him the same benefits (such as travel, accommodation and employment) as his interstate team mates like Laurie Nash. Carlton attempted to recruit Pratt, offering to pay him to stand out of football while waiting for a transfer from South Melbourne. South Melbourne, however, refused to transfer him.
, who were offering him £6. He advised South Melbourne that, if they would continue to pay him the usual rate of £3 a week and take the risk of his breaking down, he would not consider any other offer. If, on the other hand, South Melbourne was reluctant, he announced that he would transfer to Preston and take the risk of his leg keeping him out of the game.
The full story emerged at the end of June 1938 (Thursday, 30 June was the closing date for clearances), when Mr. R.T. Mullaly, the Secretary of the South Melbourne Football Club, was interviewed by Percy Taylor, the Sporting Editor of The Argus.
Mullaly explained that Pratt had sustained an ankle injury three years earlier during the exhibition match South Melbourne had played against Collingwood, in Sydney, on 3 August 1935, and that his injury in that match was so severe that he was unable to return to the field after the half-time break.
Although he received immediate treatment, he was unable to play in South Melbourne's next match, against Carlton on 10 August 1935; but he was fit enough to play against North Melbourne on 17 August 1935, two weeks later (he kicked 5 goals in the match). He continued to play for the rest of the season.
Then, just two days before the 1935 Grand Final, Pratt was hit by a truck, badly injuring the same ankle. Pratt received immediate medical attention, including intensive massage treatment, and was later taken, by South Melbourne, to a leading surgeon. As a consequence of the treatment he received, Pratt was able to play in all of the 21 games that South Melbourne played in 1936, scoring 64 goals for the season. Then, in 1937, after the match against North Melbourne on 14 June 1937, Pratt complained of pain in his badly jarred ankle; his ankle was X-rayed, and South Melbourne took him to "the best bone specialist in Melbourne", who diagnosed "arthritis". They sought a second opinion; and Pratt also continued to receive extensive massage treatment as well. Pratt did not play again in 1937.
According to Mullaly, Pratt had begun training some two months before the 1938 season had started, and had played well in some of the club's practice games; only to have complained, once again, of ankle problems. He was appointed vice-captain to Herbie Matthews
two weeks before the season began. Although not playing, he was retained on South Melbourne's training list – and, as a consequence, was receiving £1 a week – and only seemed to become anxious about the condition of his ankle as the closing date for clearances had approached, and had asked for the club to arrange another X-ray. Mullaly thought that it was "absurd" for Pratt to contemplate gaining a clearance to another club if, in fact, he was not fit to play for South Melbourne. The two medical men consulted by South Melbourne reported, on Friday 24 June, that Pratt had arthritis and that he must retire.
Suddenly and unexpectedly, on 28 June 1938 (two days before the VFL's clearance applications closed), Pratt appeared at South Melbourne's Tuesday night training session and, despite the medical advice that had been given to him, he declared that, despite his chronic arthritis, he wanted to play again with South Melbourne, and that he would train in earnest, and was hoping (despite his lack of condition, and his long absence from the playing field) to be selected in the next few weeks. He reported that he had previously found that "he was not inconvenienced while on the field", although he did experience great discomfort for some time after each game; and, also, he said, he was confident that, although he had a chronic injury, playing VFL football would not do his injury any further harm.
Pratt went on to play seven matches in 1938 (his first, against Collingwood, was in round 11, on 2 July 1938), kicking 32 goals, including nine goals against Geelong in the final round. South finished last on the ladder that season with two wins and sixteen losses.
. When told that he would have to stand out of VFL football for three years to do so, he signed with Coburg Football Club in the VFA
; although fellow VFA side Port Melbourne
, much of whose territory was shared with South Melbourne, had offered Pratt substantially more.
Also transferring to the VFA for the 1940 season was Collingwood full-forward Ron Todd
, who moved to Williamstown
. With former South Melbourne team mate Laurie Nash at VFA club Camberwell
(and still considered amongst the best footballers in the country), there was talk that the VFA, traditionally the lesser of the two leagues, would now match the VFL for crowds.
In that time he continued his incredible goal scoring record, booting 183 goals during 1941 (a mark bettered only once in VFA/VFL history, by Ron Todd
in 1945), including 22 goals in a game against Sandringham. In all, Pratt played 40 games for Coburg, kicking 263 goals.
(RAAF), serving as a Corporal
in the 7th Medical Receiving Station, defending airfields in the Pacific and in Borneo
.
While in service, Pratt had the opportunity to play football, representing the Stores team in the RAAF competition. Playing at full-forward, Pratt helped Stores to the 1942 RAAF premiership, kicking three goals in the grand final against the "Rookies".
Pratt was discharged on 14 November 1945.
but was posted north by the RAAF and did not play during the season.
Pratt caused a sensation when he attempted a comeback with South Melbourne in 1946
aged 33; he was reported to be marking and kicking at full-forward "in something like his old style" during the pre-season practice matches.
Freely granted a clearance from the VFA back to South Melbourne, and looking exceedingly well and seeming keen to play at his best, kicked two early goals in his return match, against Carlton in the first round of the 1946 season, which turned out to be a comparatively entertaining display of football, but also rather tame and blood-less compared with the teams' last meeting in the 1945 "Bloodbath" Grand Final
. During the match, Pratt received a career ending leg injury.
Interviewed at the time, Pratt said "I'm playing only for the money" but when his wife Olive interrupted and said that he would still play for nothing, Pratt replied "Well, she might be right, too."
Asked late in life why he never coached, Pratt replied "It was no trouble to me to do things that the ordinary bloke couldn't do, but if he didn't do it, I couldn't understand why."
, after playing against Geelong
earlier that day. His team mate James Reid
was best man. Over a thousand people attended the wedding, with over 400 people outside, jostling to see the couple. Two constables were required to keep the crowd away from the church doors and pickpockets took advantage of the crush of people to steal from the crowd.
Pratt had a son, Bob Pratt, Jr.
, who also played for South Melbourne; but following a string of injuries, retired following increased business pressures.
Pratt worked at various times for the Melbourne Star newspaper, as an inspector of news agencies and as a sales representative for soft drink companies, as well as writing a football column for The Argus
newspaper.
Pratt also raced greyhound
s and played competitive lawn bowls.
Pratt died on 6 January 2001 at Frankston Hospital following a long illness.
South Melbourne team mate Laurie Nash
once wrote of Pratt; "He was the greatest high mark I have ever seen. How he didn't kill himself in some of his marking efforts I will never know."
Richmond captain Jack Dyer
wrote that it would be difficult to convey Pratt's greatness to future generations of football fans who had not been privileged to see him in action.
Triple Brownlow medallist Dick Reynolds
of Essendon wrote that Pratt was the best forward he had seen, saying that "none rivalled the greatness" of Pratt, adding that he was a master of judgement and long kicking.
Collingwood champion full-back Jack Regan
said that, in all of his years playing senior VFL football, Pratt was his most difficult opponent, and that he stood out from all the other full-forwards he had played against: "The greatness of Pratt apart from his brilliant marking and fine kicking was his determined ground play. When beaten for the mark he would dash for the ball like a terrier".
In the opinion of the former West Australian champion rover Johnny Leonard
, who had been the captain coach of South Melbourne in 1932 (he played 12 VFL games with South Melbourne in 1932), Pratt was a champion: "I think Pratt was the most freakish footballer I ever saw. He was more freakish than Ted Flemming
, and that's saying something. He had a heart as big as a grandstand and stood up to heavy punishment as well as risking a broken neck in his phenomenal leaps for the ball. He was a great footballer".
in the forward pocket in their official 'Team of the Century'.
Along with Bob Skilton
and Paul Kelly
, Pratt was named an official "Swans Legend" in 2009.
Sydney has named their Leading Goal kicker Award the "Bob Pratt Trophy".
His tally of 37 goals in finals football was a club record until 2008.
In 2009 The Australian
nominated Pratt as one of the 25 greatest footballers never to win a Brownlow medal
.
In 2000 Pratt was named at Full-forward in Coburg's Team of the Century.
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
er from Mitcham, Victoria
Mitcham, Victoria
Mitcham is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 20 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Whitehorse. At the 2006 Census, Mitcham had a population of 14,211.-History:...
.
Pratt played with South Melbourne Football Club
Sydney Swans
The Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney...
in the Victorian Football League
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
(VFL) from 1930
1930 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1930.-Premiership season:In 1930, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
–1939
1939 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1939.-Premiership season:In 1939, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
and again in 1946
1946 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1946.-Premiership season:In 1946, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus two substitute players, known as the 19th man and the 20th man...
, and with the Coburg Football Club in the Victorian Football Association
Victorian Football League
The Victorian Football League which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association , taking its new name as from the 1996 season, is the premier Australian rules football league in Victoria The Victorian Football League (VFL) which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association...
from 1940 to 1941. Considered "arguably the best full-forward
Full-forward
Full-forward is a position in Australian rules football and Gaelic football with a key focus on kicking goals.Leading full-forwards of the Australian Football League are usually among those awarded with the Coleman Medal for the most goals in an AFL season....
in the history of Australian rules", he was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame
Australian Football Hall of Fame
The Australian Football Hall of Fame was established in 1996, the Centenary year of the Australian Football League, to help recognise the contributions made to the sport of Australian rules football by players, umpires, media personalities, coaches and administrators. It was initially established...
with Legend status in 1996.
Known for spectacular
Specky
A spectacular mark is a term for a type of mark in Australian rules football...
diving and high flying marks, he topped the club's goalkicking for the first time in 1932
1932 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1932.-Premiership season:In 1932, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
with 71 goals and for the next three seasons passed 100 goals. His total of 150 goals in 1934
1934 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1934.-Premiership season:In 1934, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
was a VFL/AFL record haul and is now shared with Peter Hudson
Peter Hudson
Peter John Hudson AM is a former Australian Rules Football player, considered one of the greatest full-forwards in the game's history....
who equalled it in 1971
1971 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1971.-Premiership season:In 1971, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus two substitute players, known as the 19th man and the 20th man...
. The tally included 15 goals in a single game, one of eight times that he would kick 10 goals in a game.
Early life
The son of Harold Robert Pratt and Olive Pratt (née Fosbrook) Harold Robert Pratt, Jr. was born in West Brunswick on 31 August 1912. He grew up in the Melbourne suburb of MitchamMitcham, Victoria
Mitcham is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 20 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Whitehorse. At the 2006 Census, Mitcham had a population of 14,211.-History:...
, and was known as "Bob" to avoid confusion with his father.
Playing as a junior for local club Mitcham, Pratt attracted the attention of rival VFL clubs South Melbourne and Hawthorn
Hawthorn Football Club
The Hawthorn Football Club, nicknamed the Hawks, is a professional Australian rules football club in the Australian Football League . The club, founded in 1902, is the youngest of the Victorian-based teams in the AFL. The team play in Brown & Gold vertically striped guernseys...
. Whilst Hawthorn lost interest after a poor performance by Pratt in a match, South Melbourne signed him following a recommendation from the Mitcham coach.
South Melbourne
1929
Recruited from Mitcham, Pratt played his first game for the South Melbourne Second XVIII, against Hawthorn, on 15 June 1929. He was one of the best on the ground in a team that won 15.16 (106) to 4.9 (33), scoring four goals.He played in the forward pocket
Forward pocket
In Australian rules football, the forward pocket refers to a position on the field deep in offense.Forward pocket players, situated in the forward line, need to have good avoidance and goal sneak skills and usually, quality forward-pockets are noted for their agility and ability to score difficult...
for the Second XVIII in the 1929 First Semi-Final against Essendon, and was one of the best players for South Melbourne. He was replaced in the team for the preliminary final match against Geelong by Jack Richardson, most likely because Richardson had played 10 senior matches that year, rather than due to any disappointment in Pratt's performance (it was the prevailing wisdom that it was always better to play experienced senior players in Second XVIII finals matches); Geelong won the match.
1930
Pratt's senior VFL career began in the first round of the 1930 season, when (aged 17 years, 245 days) he played at centre half-forward for South Melbourne, against MelbourneMelbourne Football Club
The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Demons, is an Australian rules football club playing in the Australian Football League , based in Melbourne, Victoria....
at South Melbourne's home ground, Lake Oval
Lake Oval
The Lake Oval was an Australian rules football and cricket stadium located in Albert Park, Victoria. It was the home of the South Melbourne Football Club from 1878 until their relocation to Sydney in 1982 , and also of the South Melbourne Cricket Club...
. Although South Melbourne lost the match by 25 points, Pratt kicked four goals, and was considered to be South Melbourne's best player on the day.
He played the entire season of 18 Home and Away matches, kicking 43 goals for the season — his best score was five goals in Round 10 against Fitzroy
Fitzroy Football Club
The Fitzroy Football Club, formerly nicknamed The Lions, is an Australian rules football club formed in 1883 to represent the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria and was a foundation member club of the Victorian Football League on its inception in 1897...
– and was second on South Melbourne's goalkicking list to the full-forward, Austin Robertson.
He was considered to have "immense promise".
1931
Still playing at centre half-forward, he played 15 games and kicked 23 goals, becoming the equal third highest goalkicker for South. Leading VFL footballer turned journalist Wallace Sharland complimented Pratt on his pace, stating that he had plenty of "toe". South Melbourne finished seventh with nine wins from eighteen matches.1932
South Melbourne selected Roy Selleck, a recruit from Springvale, at full-forward, and selected Pratt at centre half-forward for the opening match of the 1932 season. Selleck was not a success (in fact he only played three senior VFL games), and he was moved to the forward flank for the second match, and Pratt was moved to full-forward for the first time. In his first game as full-forwad he kicked 7 goals 1 behind.Pratt topped South Melbourne's goalkicking for the first time in 1932
1932 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1932.-Premiership season:In 1932, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
with 71 goals, fifty of them coming by Round Nine. His tally broke the previous record for goals scored in a season by a South Melbourne player, held by Ted Johnson
Ted Johnson (footballer)
Edward 'Ted' Johnson was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1920s. He was a key position forward and represented Victoria at interstate football....
, who kicked 60 goals in the 1924
1924 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1924.-Premiership season:In 1924, the VFL competition consisted of nine teams of 18 on-the-field players each, with no "reserves", although any of the 18 players who had left the playing field for any reason could later resume their...
, 1925
1925 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1925.-New Teams:In 1915, and from 1919 to 1924, there were nine teams in the VFL competition...
and 1928
1928 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1928.-Premiership season:In 1928, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, with no "reserves", although any of the 18 players who had left the playing field for any reason could later resume...
seasons.
On 2 July 1932, in the round nine match against Fitzroy, playing at full-forward, Pratt kicked 7 goals (The Argus noted that “Pratt was keen and accurate [up] forward”, whilst The Age remarked on Pratt’s “extraordinary marking and kicking) in a more accurate South Melbourne’s 12.10 (82) win over Fitzroy 10.15 (75). After the match, Pratt was reported by goal umpire Greenwood and boundary umpire Treloar for striking Fitzroy’s back-pocket Frank Curcio
Frank Curcio
Francis 'Frank' Eduardo Curcio was an Australian rules footballer who played his entire 249 game career for the Fitzroy Lions in the Victorian Football League...
in the back, near the right kidney, in the third quarter. At the VFL tribunal hearing on Thursday, 7 July 1932, the charge against Pratt was not sustained (“Curcio said that he had no recollection of having been struck”).
This was the only occasion that Pratt was reported in his entire VFL career.
1933
South Melbourne underwent a massive recruiting drive prior to the 1933 VFL season1933 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1933.-Premiership season:In 1933, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
, recruiting Laurie Nash
Laurie Nash
Laurence John "Laurie" Nash was a Test cricketer and Australian rules footballer. An inductee into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, Nash was a member of South Melbourne's 1933 premiership team, captained South Melbourne in 1937 and was the team's leading goal kicker in 1937 and 1945...
and Frank Davies from Tasmania
Tasmania
Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
, Wilbur Harris
Wilbur Harris
Wilbur Harris was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .Harris was a ruckman, recruited from South Australian club West Torrens. He originally had trouble establishing a spot in the South Melbourne side but managed to secure the position of...
and Ossie Bertram
Ossie Bertram
Hans 'Ossie' Bertram was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne and St Kilda in the VFL during the 1930s....
from South Australia and Western Australians Jim O'Meara
Jim O'Meara
Jim O'Meara was an Australian rules footballer who played for Fitzroy and South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1930s....
and John Bowe
John Bowe (footballer)
John Bowe was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL. He played on the wing in the club's 1933 Grand Final win over Richmond.-External links:...
.
After a slow start, the team melded well together to win the 1933 premiership side. Pratt, who kicked 109 goals for the season from eighteen matches, was "idolised by all South fans ... (who) flocked to the Lake Oval and other grounds to see him action." Pratt kicked three goals in the grand final
1933 VFL Grand Final
The 1933 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Richmond Football Club and South Melbourne Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 30 September 1933. It was the 37th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to...
to overtake Collingwood
Collingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
's Gordon Coventry
Gordon Coventry
Gordon "Nuts" Coventry was an Australian rules footballer who played for Collingwood Football Club in the Victorian Football League . With 1,299 goals over 18 seasons, Coventry remains one of the greatest full forwards the game has ever seen...
as the VFL's leading goalkicker for the season.
1934
Pratt had a disrupted pre-season, barely training and playing only one practice match, yet he kicked eight goals in Round One against CollingwoodCollingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
. At the age of just 20, Pratt had already become a fan favourite at South Melbourne. Local newspaper the South Melbourne Record wrote of his performances "Nothing gave South fans greater delight than to see Pratt soaring above the packs. The fruits of victory would not taste so sweet if Pratt failed to reap a bag of half a dozen majors."
Pratt kicked 15 goals 3 behinds (eight of his goals were kicked in something like ten minutes) in round three against Essendon
Essendon Football Club
The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
, a VFL record that would stand until 1949. He also kicked a bag of 12 against Footscray (including seven in a quarter) and 11 against Carlton
Carlton Football Club
The Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
and Essendon. Pratt reached 100 goals for the season in the third quarter of the Round 13 match against Carlton, the least number of games ever required to reach 100 goals in a season.
In a match against Carlton, Pratt kicked eight goals in the third quarter, which is one of the highest amount of goals kicked in a quarter, by an individual in the VFL.
South Melbourne dominated the competition through the season and were considered the clear favourite to win the 1934 premiership. However, in the Grand Final
1934 VFL Grand Final
The 1934 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Richmond Football Club and South Melbourne Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 13 October 1934. It was the 38th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to...
, South were outplayed by Richmond
Richmond Football Club
The Richmond Football Club, nicknamed The Tigers, is an Australian rules football club which competes in the Australian Football League. Richmond shares healthy rivalries with Carlton, Collingwood and Essendon. After winning five premierships between 1967 and 1980, the club hit the depths in 1990,...
, losing by 39 points, with Pratt kicking two goals to take his season tally to 150 goals. Post-match rumours of South Melbourne players accepting bribes to play poorly were so strong that Pratt and team mate Peter Reville
Peter Reville
Peter Reville , Christened "Henry James", but adopted his fathers Christian name, was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne and Fitzroy in the VFL....
confronted several players they suspected of playing poorly.
His total of 150 goals in 1934
1934 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1934.-Premiership season:In 1934, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
was a VFL/AFL record haul and is now shared with Peter Hudson
Peter Hudson
Peter John Hudson AM is a former Australian Rules Football player, considered one of the greatest full-forwards in the game's history....
who equalled it in 1971
1971 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1971.-Premiership season:In 1971, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus two substitute players, known as the 19th man and the 20th man...
.
In addition to his 150 goals, Pratt kicked 94 points, which is still the record for the most number of behinds kicked in a season (Pratt is also second on the second on this list, having kicked 93 points in 1933).
Pratt had his best Brownlow Medal
Brownlow Medal
The Chas Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal , is awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the Australian Football League during the regular season as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game...
result in 1934
1934 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1934.-Premiership season:In 1934, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
, polling 14 votes to finish eighth, six votes behind winner, Essendon
Essendon Football Club
The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
's Dick Reynolds
Dick Reynolds
Richard Sylvannus 'Dick' Reynolds was an Australian rules footballer and coach who represented Essendon and Victoria with great distinction....
. For all of this, Pratt did not win South Melbourne's Best and Fairest Award (won by Terry Brain
Terry Brain
Terry Brain was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the VFL.A lightly built rover, Brain was one of the few Victorians in the South Melbourne side of the 1930s which was known as the 'foreign legion'. Brain played 141 games for the club, including the 1933 Grand Final...
). When Pratt asked a committee member why, he was given the response "You're very spectacular but not very effective." He did, however, receive the equivalent of A$100 from South Melbourne in recognition of his feat.
1935
Pratt was again a star performer in 19351935 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1935.-Premiership season:In 1935, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
, kicking 103 goals for the year and, for the third season in a row, being the VFL Leading Goalkicker (an outstanding feat, given that his team mates Roy Moore
Roy Moore (Australian footballer)
Roy Moore was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League during the 1930s. His father Herbert Moore played a game for South Melbourne in their premiership year of 1909....
and Laurie Nash
Laurie Nash
Laurence John "Laurie" Nash was a Test cricketer and Australian rules footballer. An inductee into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, Nash was a member of South Melbourne's 1933 premiership team, captained South Melbourne in 1937 and was the team's leading goal kicker in 1937 and 1945...
scored 52 and 51 goals respectively for the 1935 season as well).
Following a convincing win in the second-semi final against Collingwood, when Pratt kicked six goals, South Melbourne were again considered favourite to win the premiership. However, Pratt missed the 1935 VFL Grand Final
1935 VFL Grand Final
The 1935 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Collingwood Football Club and South Melbourne Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 5 October 1935. It was the 39th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to...
through bizarre circumstances. On the Thursday night prior to the Grand Final he was clipped by a truck carrying five tonnes of bricks moments after he stepped off a tram on High Street, Prahran
Prahran, Victoria
Prahran , also known colloquially as "Pran", is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 5 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Stonnington. At the 2006 Census, Prahran had a population of 10,651. It is a part of Melbourne with...
. Pratt injured an ankle and lacerated both legs due to the accident and was unable to play.
In response to the accident, the South Melbourne Record wrote
The initial attack on the inhabitants of Adowa by Benito MussoliniBenito MussoliniBenito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
's invading army upon Emperor Haile Selassie, is no greater shock than that received by SMFC officials when they learned on Thursday afternoon, through the press, that Bob Pratt had been involved in a collision with a motor truck.
The truck driver, a South Melbourne supporter, offered Pratt a packet of cigarettes as a way of apology.
In Pratt's absence Collingwood won the Grand Final by 20 points.
1936
Bob Pratt, Jr.
Bob Pratt, Jr is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League ....
was born on 24 March 1936, and Pratt suddenly found himself unemployed when the newspaper he worked for, The Star, unexpectedly folded.
Annoyed at what he considered unfair treatment by club management towards him compared to interstate recruits, Pratt first sought to leave South Melbourne for another club in June 1936, stating that he was unemployed and believed another club could find him employment. Pratt relented when local politician Robert Williams MLC found him a job in a brewery.
Perhaps driven by his financial circumstances, Pratt was the only South Melbourne player to play in every senior game in 1936. The South Melbourne players, including Pratt, had suffered a large number of injuries over the season, and the (astounding in 1936) number of 39 different men played at least one senior game that season: and, "of [that 39] Bob Pratt is the only one who has played in every engagement, and on occasions he has had to nurse injuries certain to have kept most other players out of the game".
In the first round match against Melbourne, Pratt was well held by his opponent, Harry Long
Harry Long (footballer)
Harry Long was an Australian rules footballer who played for Melbourne in the Victorian Football League ....
, who was the best Melbourne player on the day. Pratt kicked 5 goals and 5 behinds for the match; his first goal for the day came from an "amazing mark" which he took "almost on the goal line" ("[Pratt] went from behind the pack with a tremendous leap and took the ball in his finger-tips to score an easy goal"). That first goal of the 1936 season brought his VFL career total to 500 goals (in 106 matches).
1937
Injuries (including a split nerve that had been undiagnosed) restricted Pratt to just six games in 19371937 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1937.-Premiership season:In 1937, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
for twelve goals (leading him to consider retirement on a number of occasions).
Pratt walked out on South Melbourne after round eight, 1937, believing club officials considered him part of the furniture and did not see it necessary to offer him the same benefits (such as travel, accommodation and employment) as his interstate team mates like Laurie Nash. Carlton attempted to recruit Pratt, offering to pay him to stand out of football while waiting for a transfer from South Melbourne. South Melbourne, however, refused to transfer him.
1938
Pratt abandoned plans to join Carlton but continual injury problems delayed the start of his year. In April, Pratt announced he was considering a transfer to Victorian Football Association (VFA) club PrestonNorthern Bullants
Northern Blues Football Club is a long-established Australian rules football club based in Preston and currently playing in the Victorian Football League representing the central and outer areas of Melbourne...
, who were offering him £6. He advised South Melbourne that, if they would continue to pay him the usual rate of £3 a week and take the risk of his breaking down, he would not consider any other offer. If, on the other hand, South Melbourne was reluctant, he announced that he would transfer to Preston and take the risk of his leg keeping him out of the game.
The full story emerged at the end of June 1938 (Thursday, 30 June was the closing date for clearances), when Mr. R.T. Mullaly, the Secretary of the South Melbourne Football Club, was interviewed by Percy Taylor, the Sporting Editor of The Argus.
Mullaly explained that Pratt had sustained an ankle injury three years earlier during the exhibition match South Melbourne had played against Collingwood, in Sydney, on 3 August 1935, and that his injury in that match was so severe that he was unable to return to the field after the half-time break.
Although he received immediate treatment, he was unable to play in South Melbourne's next match, against Carlton on 10 August 1935; but he was fit enough to play against North Melbourne on 17 August 1935, two weeks later (he kicked 5 goals in the match). He continued to play for the rest of the season.
Then, just two days before the 1935 Grand Final, Pratt was hit by a truck, badly injuring the same ankle. Pratt received immediate medical attention, including intensive massage treatment, and was later taken, by South Melbourne, to a leading surgeon. As a consequence of the treatment he received, Pratt was able to play in all of the 21 games that South Melbourne played in 1936, scoring 64 goals for the season. Then, in 1937, after the match against North Melbourne on 14 June 1937, Pratt complained of pain in his badly jarred ankle; his ankle was X-rayed, and South Melbourne took him to "the best bone specialist in Melbourne", who diagnosed "arthritis". They sought a second opinion; and Pratt also continued to receive extensive massage treatment as well. Pratt did not play again in 1937.
According to Mullaly, Pratt had begun training some two months before the 1938 season had started, and had played well in some of the club's practice games; only to have complained, once again, of ankle problems. He was appointed vice-captain to Herbie Matthews
Herbie Matthews
Herbie Matthews was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League. He was recruited from suburban Fairfield under the League's "father and son" rule. His father, 'Butcher' Matthews, partnered the great Roy Cazaly in South Melbourne's ruck...
two weeks before the season began. Although not playing, he was retained on South Melbourne's training list – and, as a consequence, was receiving £1 a week – and only seemed to become anxious about the condition of his ankle as the closing date for clearances had approached, and had asked for the club to arrange another X-ray. Mullaly thought that it was "absurd" for Pratt to contemplate gaining a clearance to another club if, in fact, he was not fit to play for South Melbourne. The two medical men consulted by South Melbourne reported, on Friday 24 June, that Pratt had arthritis and that he must retire.
Suddenly and unexpectedly, on 28 June 1938 (two days before the VFL's clearance applications closed), Pratt appeared at South Melbourne's Tuesday night training session and, despite the medical advice that had been given to him, he declared that, despite his chronic arthritis, he wanted to play again with South Melbourne, and that he would train in earnest, and was hoping (despite his lack of condition, and his long absence from the playing field) to be selected in the next few weeks. He reported that he had previously found that "he was not inconvenienced while on the field", although he did experience great discomfort for some time after each game; and, also, he said, he was confident that, although he had a chronic injury, playing VFL football would not do his injury any further harm.
Pratt went on to play seven matches in 1938 (his first, against Collingwood, was in round 11, on 2 July 1938), kicking 32 goals, including nine goals against Geelong in the final round. South finished last on the ladder that season with two wins and sixteen losses.
1939
In 1939, Pratt played 16 games with South Melbourne, scoring 72 goals for the season. Towards the end of the season, there were many rumours that he would retire from football; and, when asked, he said that he would play the last match of the season, and implied that he would be returning to South Melbourne in 1940.Move to Coburg
In 1940 Pratt sought a clearance to fellow VFL side CarltonCarlton Football Club
The Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
. When told that he would have to stand out of VFL football for three years to do so, he signed with Coburg Football Club in the VFA
Victorian Football League
The Victorian Football League which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association , taking its new name as from the 1996 season, is the premier Australian rules football league in Victoria The Victorian Football League (VFL) which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association...
; although fellow VFA side Port Melbourne
Port Melbourne Football Club
The Port Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Borough, is an Australian rules football club based in the Melbourne suburb of Port Melbourne and is currently playing in the Victorian Football League ....
, much of whose territory was shared with South Melbourne, had offered Pratt substantially more.
Also transferring to the VFA for the 1940 season was Collingwood full-forward Ron Todd
Ron Todd (footballer)
Ronald Walford Todd was an Australian rules footballer who played with Collingwood in the Victorian Football League in the 1930s, and with Williamstown in the Victorian Football Association in the 1940s. Todd was an acrobatic and pacy forward, possessing a strong overhead mark...
, who moved to Williamstown
Williamstown Football Club
The Williamstown Football Club, nicknamed The Seagulls, is an Australian rules football club based in Melbourne and are currently playing in the Victorian Football League...
. With former South Melbourne team mate Laurie Nash at VFA club Camberwell
Camberwell Football Club
Camberwell Football Club was an Australian rules football club who were formed in 1896 and competed in the Victorian Football Association between 1926 and 1990. Nicknamed the Cobras, Camberwell wore dark blue, white and red club colours...
(and still considered amongst the best footballers in the country), there was talk that the VFA, traditionally the lesser of the two leagues, would now match the VFL for crowds.
In that time he continued his incredible goal scoring record, booting 183 goals during 1941 (a mark bettered only once in VFA/VFL history, by Ron Todd
Ron Todd (footballer)
Ronald Walford Todd was an Australian rules footballer who played with Collingwood in the Victorian Football League in the 1930s, and with Williamstown in the Victorian Football Association in the 1940s. Todd was an acrobatic and pacy forward, possessing a strong overhead mark...
in 1945), including 22 goals in a game against Sandringham. In all, Pratt played 40 games for Coburg, kicking 263 goals.
War service
On 26 February 1942 Pratt enlisted in the Royal Australian Air ForceRoyal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...
(RAAF), serving as a Corporal
Corporal
Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. It is usually equivalent to NATO Rank Code OR-4....
in the 7th Medical Receiving Station, defending airfields in the Pacific and in Borneo
South West Pacific theatre of World War II
The South West Pacific Theatre, technically the South West Pacific Area, between 1942 and 1945, was one of two designated area commands and war theatres enumerated by the Combined Chiefs of Staff of World War II in the Pacific region....
.
While in service, Pratt had the opportunity to play football, representing the Stores team in the RAAF competition. Playing at full-forward, Pratt helped Stores to the 1942 RAAF premiership, kicking three goals in the grand final against the "Rookies".
Pratt was discharged on 14 November 1945.
Post-war career
Returning from overseas duty, Pratt sought to play for South Melbourne in 19451945 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1945.-Premiership season:In 1945, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man...
but was posted north by the RAAF and did not play during the season.
Pratt caused a sensation when he attempted a comeback with South Melbourne in 1946
1946 VFL season
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1946.-Premiership season:In 1946, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus two substitute players, known as the 19th man and the 20th man...
aged 33; he was reported to be marking and kicking at full-forward "in something like his old style" during the pre-season practice matches.
Freely granted a clearance from the VFA back to South Melbourne, and looking exceedingly well and seeming keen to play at his best, kicked two early goals in his return match, against Carlton in the first round of the 1946 season, which turned out to be a comparatively entertaining display of football, but also rather tame and blood-less compared with the teams' last meeting in the 1945 "Bloodbath" Grand Final
1945 VFL Grand Final
The 1945 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the South Melbourne Football Club and Carlton Football Club, held at Princes Park in Melbourne on 29 September 1945. It was the 49th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers...
. During the match, Pratt received a career ending leg injury.
Interviewed at the time, Pratt said "I'm playing only for the money" but when his wife Olive interrupted and said that he would still play for nothing, Pratt replied "Well, she might be right, too."
Asked late in life why he never coached, Pratt replied "It was no trouble to me to do things that the ordinary bloke couldn't do, but if he didn't do it, I couldn't understand why."
Personal life
Pratt married Olive Sandstrom on 24 August 1935 at All Saints Church of England in St KildaSt Kilda, Victoria
St Kilda is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 6 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Port Phillip...
, after playing against Geelong
Geelong Football Club
The Geelong Football Club, nicknamed The Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club, named after and based in the city of Geelong, playing in the Australian Football League . The club has been the VFL/AFL premiers nine times, with a record equalling 3 in the AFL era. Geelong has also...
earlier that day. His team mate James Reid
Jim Reid (Australian footballer)
Jim Reid was an Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League during the 1930s....
was best man. Over a thousand people attended the wedding, with over 400 people outside, jostling to see the couple. Two constables were required to keep the crowd away from the church doors and pickpockets took advantage of the crush of people to steal from the crowd.
Pratt had a son, Bob Pratt, Jr.
Bob Pratt, Jr.
Bob Pratt, Jr is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League ....
, who also played for South Melbourne; but following a string of injuries, retired following increased business pressures.
Pratt worked at various times for the Melbourne Star newspaper, as an inspector of news agencies and as a sales representative for soft drink companies, as well as writing a football column for The Argus
The Argus (Australia)
The Argus was a morning daily newspaper in Melbourne established in 1846 and closed in 1957. Widely known as a conservative newspaper for most of its history, it adopted a left leaning approach from 1949...
newspaper.
Pratt also raced greyhound
Greyhound
The Greyhound is a breed of sighthound that has been primarily bred for coursing game and racing, and the breed has also recently seen a resurgence in its popularity as a pedigree show dog and family pet. It is a gentle and intelligent breed...
s and played competitive lawn bowls.
Pratt died on 6 January 2001 at Frankston Hospital following a long illness.
Style
Pratt was averse to weights training, believing that it took away from the athleticism required to play football. Instead, he trained with professional sprinters, which he believed helped him as it built his initial acceleration (essential to any footballer) and aided his kicking accuracy.South Melbourne team mate Laurie Nash
Laurie Nash
Laurence John "Laurie" Nash was a Test cricketer and Australian rules footballer. An inductee into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, Nash was a member of South Melbourne's 1933 premiership team, captained South Melbourne in 1937 and was the team's leading goal kicker in 1937 and 1945...
once wrote of Pratt; "He was the greatest high mark I have ever seen. How he didn't kill himself in some of his marking efforts I will never know."
Richmond captain Jack Dyer
Jack Dyer
John Raymond Dyer Sr. OAM , always known as Jack Dyer, was one of the colossal figures of Australian rules football during two distinct careers, firstly as a player and coach of the Richmond Football Club in the Victorian Football League between 1931 and 1952, and later in the broadcast media for...
wrote that it would be difficult to convey Pratt's greatness to future generations of football fans who had not been privileged to see him in action.
Triple Brownlow medallist Dick Reynolds
Dick Reynolds
Richard Sylvannus 'Dick' Reynolds was an Australian rules footballer and coach who represented Essendon and Victoria with great distinction....
of Essendon wrote that Pratt was the best forward he had seen, saying that "none rivalled the greatness" of Pratt, adding that he was a master of judgement and long kicking.
Collingwood champion full-back Jack Regan
Jack Regan
Jack Regan was an Australian rules footballer, who played 196 games with the Collingwood Football Club.Regan was known as The Prince of Fullbacks. He was regarded by many as the greatest fullback of all time but, controversially, was denied a position in the Australian Football League's Team of...
said that, in all of his years playing senior VFL football, Pratt was his most difficult opponent, and that he stood out from all the other full-forwards he had played against: "The greatness of Pratt apart from his brilliant marking and fine kicking was his determined ground play. When beaten for the mark he would dash for the ball like a terrier".
In the opinion of the former West Australian champion rover Johnny Leonard
Johnny Leonard
John "Johnny" Leonard was a player and coach of Australian rules football in the West Australian Football League and the Victorian Football League in the period 1922 to 1946....
, who had been the captain coach of South Melbourne in 1932 (he played 12 VFL games with South Melbourne in 1932), Pratt was a champion: "I think Pratt was the most freakish footballer I ever saw. He was more freakish than Ted Flemming
Ted Flemming
Ted Flemming was an Australian rules footballer who played 248 games for West Perth in the WAFL/WANFL from 1922 to 1937. He is a half back flanker in West Perth's official 'Team of the Century'....
, and that's saying something. He had a heart as big as a grandstand and stood up to heavy punishment as well as risking a broken neck in his phenomenal leaps for the ball. He was a great footballer".
Honours and legacy
At the time of his death in 2001 he was the last living member of the Swans 1933 Grand Final team. He was named beside Tony LockettTony Lockett
Anthony Howard "Tony" Lockett is a former Australian rules football player. Lockett is the highest goal scorer in the history of the VFL/AFL with 1,360 goals in a career of 281 games, that commenced in 1983 with the St Kilda Football Club, and finished in 2002 with the Sydney Swans...
in the forward pocket in their official 'Team of the Century'.
Along with Bob Skilton
Bob Skilton
Robert John "Bob" Skilton was an Australian rules football player who played as a rover for South Melbourne and Victoria between 1956 and 1971....
and Paul Kelly
Paul Kelly (footballer)
Paul Kelly is a former Australian rules footballer, winner of the Brownlow Medal and captain of the Sydney Swans for ten seasons. He was and still is known to Swans fans everywhere as "Captain Courageous"....
, Pratt was named an official "Swans Legend" in 2009.
Sydney has named their Leading Goal kicker Award the "Bob Pratt Trophy".
His tally of 37 goals in finals football was a club record until 2008.
In 2009 The Australian
The Australian
The Australian is a broadsheet newspaper published in Australia from Monday to Saturday each week since 14 July 1964. The editor in chief is Chris Mitchell, the editor is Clive Mathieson and the 'editor-at-large' is Paul Kelly....
nominated Pratt as one of the 25 greatest footballers never to win a Brownlow medal
Brownlow Medal
The Chas Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal , is awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the Australian Football League during the regular season as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game...
.
In 2000 Pratt was named at Full-forward in Coburg's Team of the Century.