Inside Gate 2 of the Members’ Reserve sits our Wall of Excellence, showcasing our MCC athletes who have excelled at their chosen sport.
From Australian football and cricket to netball, rowing and hockey and many more, the Wall of Excellence celebrates their incredible sporting accomplishments.The complete list of those listed on the MCC Wall of Excellence is below:
American Football
| Mat McBriar Originally from Melbourne, American footballer McBriar was signed as a punter (kicker) with the Dallas Cowboys in 2003. Kicking the second longest punt in Cowboys' history (75-yards) in 2006, he later set a club record by downing 38 punts inside the 20-yard line during the 2009 season. |
Athletics
| Edwin Flack Australia's Olympic pioneer who won the 800m and 1500m events at the first Modern Games in Athens in 1896. Australia’s only entrant nearly made it a treble, succumbing to exhaustion just short of the line in a valiant Marathon run that accorded him hero status in Greece. |
| John Landy AC CVO MBE FTSE A world champion middle distance runner, in 1954 Landy became only the second man to break the magic ’four-minute mile’. He also won Bronze in the 1500m at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games. In 1991 he joined the MCC committee, resigning in 2000 to take up his appointment as Governor of Victoria. |
| Christopher Perry A Stawell Gift winner in 1982, Perry was a renowned track and field athlete who also won silver in the 100m twice (1985/86 & 1986/87) at the Australian Track and Field Championship. With a personal best of 10.34 seconds for the 100 meters, Perry became the first Stawell winner to represent Australia at a major international when he attended the 1986 Edinburgh Commonwealth Games. |
| Bill Williams Aged 26, Williams won the 1956 Stawell Gift with a 12 yards handicap, by 11.8 seconds. It was the successful conclusion of a six-year plan to win the race – the first victory of his career. He had taken to running after injury had curtailed his promising football career with Richmond FC (1948-49), for whom he appeared on 9 occasions. |
Australian Football
| Dr Allen Aylett OBE A brilliant and courageous Australian footballer with North Melbourne during the 1950s, Aylett was also a fine cricketer and was one of the few to represent Victoria in both sports. Elected president of the Kangaroos in 1971, he later served eight years as president of the Victorian Football League, from 1977. |
| Ron Barassi AM A 10-time Australian football premiership player and/or coach, Barassi was one of the greats of the game in a career spanning 42 years. Much loved by supporters of all cubs, but especially Melbourne, in 1996 he was inducted as an inaugural Australian Football Hall of Fame ’Legend’. His statue can be seen outside MCG Gate 4. |
| Peter Bedford The 1970 Brownlow Medallist, Bedford played with South Melbourne FC and then Carlton FC from 1968 to 1978. He won the Swans’ Best and Fairest in 1969-1971, 1973 and 1975 and was named in the Sydney Swans (South Melbourne) Team of the Century in 2003. A talented cricketer, he also played 39 matches for Victoria. |
| Robert Flower A favourite of Demon supporters, he was an Australian footballer who possessed sublime skills and courage. Flower played 272 games with Melbourne (1973-1987) and represented Victoria on 15 occasions, three times as captain. In 1996 he was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame and in 2000 was named in Melbourne’s Team of the Century. |
| Max Gawn Considered one of the competition’s best ruckman, Gawn is a premiership captain with Melbourne Football Club (2021). He debuted for the Demons in 2011 and reached his 200th AFL game milestone for the club in 2023. He has won two Best and Fairest (2018 and 2019) and has been selected seven times in the All-Australian team. |
| Tom Harley A two-time premiership captain with Geelong FC (2007 and 2009), Harley played 198 AFL games (including one for Port Adelaide) as a key defender. He was selected in the All-Australian team in 2008 and is a member of the Geelong Football Club Hall of Fame. |
| Tom Hawkins A star tall forward for the Geelong Cats, Hawkins has played over 350 AFL games since his debut in 2007. He is a three-time AFL premiership player (2009, 2011 and 2022), a Coleman Medalist (2020) and an eleven-time leading goalkicker for Geelong. He has also been selected five times in the All-Australian team. |
| Chris Judd Judd was a prodigious Australian football player with great pace and skill. He played for the West Coast Eagles from 2002 to 2007 and captained the Eagles to the 2006 flag before moving to captain Carlton in 2008. The two-time Brownlow Medallist (2004 and 2010) also earned All-Australian selection in 2004, 2006 and 2008. |
| Bryan Kenneally A versatile mid-fielder and half forward flanker, Kenneally played 171 games for the Melbourne Football Club from 1959–1969. He played in two premiership-winning teams (1960 and 1964) and was vice-captain from 1965-1966. He represented Victoria in 1967. |
| Peter Knights One of the finest centre-half backs in Australian football, Knights played for Hawthorn from 1969 to 1985. Despite persistent injuries, he played in three premiership-winning teams (1976, 1978 and 1983) and was a nine-time Victorian representative. He was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 1996. |
| Garry Lyon A dominant centre half-forward, Lyon played for the Melbourne Football Club from 1986-1999. He captained the Demons for seven years (1991-1997), won two Best and Fairest (1990 and 1994) and in 2000 was named in the Melbourne Team of the Century. He represented Victoria ten times and was selected three times in the All-Australian Team (1993-1995). |
| Harold ‘Hassa’ Mann A champion during the Melbourne Football Club’s Golden Era, Mann played 178 games for the Demons. He won three VFL premierships (1959, 1960 and 1964) and three club Best and Fairest (1962, 1963 and 1967) to earn a spot in Melbourne’s Team of the Century. In 2013 he was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame. |
| Laurie Mithen A brilliant and courageous Australian footballer for the Melbourne Demons during their Golden Era, Mithen played in five premiership sides during his 153-game career (1954-1962). The centreman won Melbourne Football Club’s Best and Fairest in 1958 and 1959. He also captain-coached Port Melbourne to the 1964 VFA Premiership. |
| Darcy Moore A respected leader on and off the field, Moore captained Collingwood to the AFL Premiership in 2023. Since his debut in 2015 he has become a versatile and influential key defender, making the All-Australian team in 2020 and 2023, where he was captain. |
| Jack Mueller An inspirational player and gifted ruck/forward, Mueller debuted for the Melbourne Football Club in 1934. He played 216 games for the club and kicked 378 goals. He was Best and Fairest three times (1937, 1939 and 1946) and won four VFL premierships (1939, 1940, 1941 and 1948). |
| David Neitz Melbourne's captain from 2000-08, Neitz was a versatile footballer playing both centre half-back and full-forward. The first Demon to achieve the 300-game milestone, he was the John Coleman Medal recipient in 2002 and battled injury throughout his career to kick 631 goals. |
| Dennis Pagan One of Australian football’s super coaches, Pagan capped a successful 143-game playing career with North Melbourne and South Melbourne by coaching the North Under 19 side to five premierships between 1982-91. From 1993 he coached the Kangaroos, winning AFL flags in 1996 and 1999. |
| David Parkin OAM An Australian football legend, Parkin played 211 games and captained Hawthorn to a premiership in 1971. As coach, he won a premiership with Hawthorn in 1978 and then Carlton in 1981-1982 and 1995. He was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2002. |
| Ian Ridley A handy goal-kicking rover, Ridley was a Melbourne Football Club great. He played in five premiership sides during a 130-game career with the Demons (1954-1961) and later became coach and chairman of the club. Inducted into the Melbourne Football Club Hall of Fame in 2001, he was elevated to Legend status in 2006. |
| Nick Riewoldt An Australian footballer who was fast, courageous and a fine mark with a terrific leap, Riewoldt debuted for St Kilda in 2001. Club Best and Fairest on six occasions, he captained the Saints to the 2009 and 2010 AFL Grand Finals. |
Cricket
| Ian Johnson CBE A fine off-spin bowler for Australia, Johnson captained his country in 17 Tests. Also a useful lower order batsman, he achieved the relatively rare double of making 1000 runs and taking 109 wickets during his 45-Test career. He took on the MCC Secretary's job a year after his retirement in 1956, holding the position until 1983. |
| Dean Jones AM A swashbuckling batsman and brilliant fielder, ideally suited to the one-day game, Jones also scored 3631 Test runs for Australia at 46.55, including a memorable 210 against India in the tied Test at Chennai in oppressive heat. He also played in three premiership-winning sides with MCC. |
| Lindsay Kline A left-arm spinner bowler, Kline played 13 Test matches for Australia and 88 first-class matches. His Test career is highlighted by his hat trick against South Africa in Cape Town on January 3, 1958 and his key involvement in the outcome of two Test matches during the 1960/61 West Indies tour of Australia. |
| Colin McDonald AM A fine opening batsman, McDonald is best remembered for his duels with West Indies fast bowler Wes Hall in the thrilling 1960-1961 series in Australia. In 47 Test he made 3107 runs, including five centuries, at 39.32. He represented Victoria from 1947/48 – 1962/63 and played 192 First-class cricket matches. |
| Paul Sheahan AM A gifted batter and fine cover fielder whose time on the world stage was all too brief, Sheahan debut for Australia in 1967. He played 31 Tests, making 1594 with a batting average of 33.91. His first-class average of 46.16 better reflected the ability of this supremely talented stroke-maker. |
| Raelee Thompson A trailblazer in women’s cricket, Thompson was an Australian fast bowler who took 57 wickets at 18.25 in 16 Tests and 24 wickets in 23 One Day Internationals between 1972 and 1985. She captained Australia to Ashes victory in 1984/85 and in 2022 was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame. |
| Sharon Tredrea A powerful all-rounder, Sharon was one of the country's finest cricket representatives, playing 10 Tests (captaining four) and 31 One-Day Internationals, 15 as captain. In her final international match, Sharon captained the victorious Australian team in its 1988 Women's Cricket World Cup triumph on the MCG. |
| Max Walker AM Nicknamed "Tangles" for his somewhat awkward bowling action, Walker became a very effective fast-medium bowler for Australia from 1972 to 1977. He took 138 wickets at 27.47 in 34 Tests and was a fine servant of the MCC when available to play District cricket for the Club. |
| Shane Warne AO Ranked by most as the game's greatest-ever spin bowler, Warne's statistics are unparalleled, taking 708 wickets for 25.41 in 145 Test appearances. In 1994 he took a hat trick before an adoring MCG home crowd. A hard-hitting batter, he’s one of the only Australians to make 2000 runs and take 200 wickets in Tests. His statue was unveiled outside MCG Gate 2 in 2011 and in 2022 the MCG’s Great Southern Stand was renamed in his honour. |
Diving
| Dean Pullar Pullar's accolades come from across the diving world. In 1998 he claimed two silver medals at the Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games, and a bronze at the World Championships. Pullar reached Olympic heights at Sydney 2000, claiming bronze with Robert Newberry in the synchronized diving. |
Golf
| Peter Thomson AO CBE One of Australia's greatest golfers, Thomson won the British Open an unprecedented five times in 1954-56, 1958 and 1965 during an illustrious career on the international circuit. Despite relatively limited appearances at home, he also managed to take out the Australian Open three times - in 1951, 1967 and 1972. |
Hockey
| Louise Dobson OAM OLY A gold Medallist with the Hockeyroos at Atlanta in 1996 and vice-captain of the team at Athens in 2004, Louise and teammate Danni Roche were the first MCC Sporting Sections representatives to win gold at an Olympic Games. She played 230 times for the Australian Women's National Team, scoring 58 goals. |
| Claire Mitchell-Taverner OAM Mitchell-Taverner became the MCC's third gold Medal-winning representative when the Hockeyroos triumphed at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. She played more than 180 games for Australia, with other wins including the 1998 World Cup and a gold medal at the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games. |
| Danielle Roche OAM Roche made her debut for the Australian women’s hockey team in 1989 and was a valuable member of the Hockeyroos when they defeated Korea to win gold at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. She and teammate Louise Dobson were the first MCC Sporting Sections representatives to win an Olympic gold medal. |
| David Wansbrough OAM An international hockey representative from 1985 to 1998, Wansbrough competed at two Olympic Games, winning silver in 1992, and at three World Cups (1986, 1990 and 1994). Playing more than 200 games for Australia he played in nine Champions Trophy Tournaments for three gold, four silver and two bronze medals. |
Lacrosse
| Ken Nichols Nichols captained both the Victorian and Australian teams and represented his nation four times at the Lacrosse World Championships (1980, 1982, 1986 and 1990). He was the MCC Lacrosse Section's senior team captain for 11 years and 15 times winner of the Section's Best and Fairest award. |
Netball
| Madison Browne Making her debut for Australia in 2010, Madi Browne was one of netball's most dynamic mid-courters. A multiple winner of the Liz Ellis Diamond (2012 and 2014) and twice winner of the International Player of the Year award, she played 106 games for the Melbourne Vixens and was inaugural captain of the Collingwood Magpies. With Australia she won gold at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games and silver at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. |
Real Tennis
| Rob Fahey MBE OAM A giant in the sport of real tennis, Fahey has claimed more than ten World Championships, including holding the title consecutively from 1994 to 2016. Having won more than 50 real tennis Opens across the world, Fahey represents the pinnacle of his sport. |
Rowing
| Peter Antonie OAM An elite rower for over 24 years, Antonie is one of the sport's finest and most enduring competitors. He won gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, gold at the 1986 Edinburgh Commonwealth Games and took home 29 Australian national championship titles. |
| David Crawshay OAM A member of Australia's quadruple sculls team at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games and prominent in double sculls at the World Cup in 2008. Crawshay struck gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, partnering Scott Brennan to an unexpected victory in the double sculls. |
| Drew Ginn OAM A member of the ‘Oarsome Foursome's’ gold medal-winning combination at Atlanta in 1996, Ginn also won gold at Athens in 2004, gold at Beijing in 2008 and silver at London in 2012. Ginn is recognised by the Australian Olympic Committee as one of this country's top 50 athletes of all time. |
| Jessica Morrison OAM Considered one of the world’s leading female rowers, Morrison is an Australian Olympian. She is an Australian national champion and won two silver medals at the 2019 World Rowing Championships before winning gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games in the coxless four. She has subsequently won a third World Rowing silver medal at the 2023 Championships. |
| James Tomkins OAM OLY An all-time great of rowing, Tomkins was part of the ‘Oarsome Foursome’ that took Olympic gold in 1992 and 1996. He won Bronze in the Coxless Pairs at Sydney and at Athens he won gold in the same event. Between 1986 and 2003 he won seven World Rowing Championship gold medals. |
Surf Ironwoman
| Harriet Brown Hailing from Geelong, Brown is a two-time Nutri-Grain Ironwoman Series Champion (2017 and 2021/22) and Three-time Molokai to Oahu Paddleboard Champion & Record Holder (2017-2019). She has captained the Australian Surf Life Saving Team three times and in 2017 won the Surf Life Saving Queensland Athlete of the Year award. |
Swimming
| McKenzie (Mack) Horton OAM A world-class competitor and respected advocate of integrity in sport, Horton is an Olympic gold medallist, World Championships gold medallist, and four-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist. His 400m freestyle win at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games made him the first male swimmer from Victoria to win an Olympic swimming gold in the Games' history. |
| John Marshall Marshall was a freestyle specialist who swam for Australia at three Olympic Games (1948, 1952 and 1956). Over the course of his career he broke 28 world records and at the 1949 Australian Nationals took home every freestyle title from 100m to 1500m. |
| Rob Woodhouse A Bronze Medallist in swimming's 400m individual medley at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, Woodhouse also won Silver in the 200m and 400m individual medley at the 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh. He took Silver again at Auckland in 1990 before embarking on a career in sports marketing and management. |
Tennis
| Sir Norman Brookes Brookes is among tennis's finest players, with two Wimbledon crowns (1907 and 1914), an Australasian Singles Championship in 1911 and Davis Cup victories six times between 1907 and 1919. His record at Wimbledon could have been much better, but he only travelled abroad when representing Australasia in the Davis Cup. |
| Pat Cash The 1987 Wimbledon Singles champion, Cash broke a long drought for Australia in tennis to become an immensely popular and respected competitor. He was a great fan of Davis Cup tennis, being part of winning teams in 1983 and 1986 and was twice runner-up in the Australian Open (1987 and 1988). |
| John Fraser A Wimbledon Singles semi-finalist in 1962 and Australian Open quarter-finalist in 1963, Fraser was later president of the Victorian Tennis Association (1983-1996). He played for the MCC Tennis Section for many years and in 1987 won the Hans Ebeling Award for services to the Section. |
| Neale Fraser AO MBE Neale Fraser had a stellar tennis career. Asa player he had singles success at Wimbledon and (twice) at the US Open championship and was in Davis Cup-winning teams from 1959 to 1962. 16 Doubles titles were also won at Grand Slam events. As coach he oversaw Davis Cup success on four occasions between 1970 and1993. Fraser also, somehow, found time to play cricket with the MCC Club XI during the 1960s. |
| Gerald Patterson MC Patterson succeeded fellow MCC member Norman Brookes as an Australian trailblazer in international tennis, winning Wimbledon in 1919 (beating Brookes) and in 1922. He represented Australasia in the victorious 1919 Davis Cup team and won the Australian Singles Championship in 1927. |
| John Peers A doubles tennis specialist, Peers secured his 30th career title in 2024. He has won two Grand Slams, in doubles at the 2017 Australian Open and in mixed doubles at the 2022 US Open. He is a three-time Olympian and won the mixed doubles bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games and the doubles gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. |
| Frank Sedgman AO A world No.1 tennis player, Sedgman was known for his volleying and speed at the net. Between 1949 and 1952 he won five Grand Slam singles tournaments (winning all but the French Open) and 22 Grand Slam doubles tournaments. He was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1979. |
| Brian Tobin AM An Australian Hard Court Doubles champion in 1954 and Federation Cup captain in 1964, Tobin made his mark in tennis as an administrator. He was President of the LTAA/Tennis Australia from 1977 to 1989 and served as President of the International Tennis Federation from 1991 to 1999. |