Vale – Ken Albiston (11 November 1926 – 20 June 2018).

MHS Exit 1944

Ken Albiston, 100-game VFL footballer, passed away on June 20 at the age of 91.

Albiston represented Melbourne High School Old Boys from 1943 to 1945. 1944 was his finest season, with the talented rover/forward captaining his side, winning the VAFA B&F and booting 106 goals. After finishing school in 1944, Albiston served for seven months in the Air Force during the final year of WW2.

He was spotted by the Richmond Football Club and signed on for the 1946 VFL season, becoming the third member of his family to play in the VFL after his brothers Alec (Hawthorn) and Harold (Hawthorn and Collingwood).

Despite his small stature (171cm), Albiston played 58 games with the Tigers, kicking 76 goals, and was noted for his ability to kick on both sides of his body; a rare talent in that era.

He transferred to the Melbourne Football Club in 1952 and went on to play 45 games over the next three seasons, booting 49 goals. He was runner-up in the league’s Gardiner Medal for Best and Fairest in the Seconds competition during his last year and his final game for the Demons was the 1954 Grand Final loss to Footscray.

Albiston moved to the Ringwood Football Club in 1955 and coached them to premierships in ’55, ’56 and ’57.

Our deepest condolences go out to his family and friends.