BIO

Hartley Klau was a late-starter with Norwood.  He was 28 when he joined Norwood from Ceduna  in 1951 and appears to have sat on the bench for the greater part of his three league games.  

Hartley came on for the last quarter at Prospect Oval on 5 May 1951 in place of Claude Gross, a 1950 premiership forward whose league career ended that day.  North Adelaide had all the answers and went on to win 11.8 to 5.10.   Hartley was named 19th man on 19 May, when West Adelaide beat Norwood by 17 points, and was 20th man on 1 September, when Norwood beat Sturt by 27 points. There is no record that he got a run in either home game.  He was, however, a valuable addition to the Reserves team, kicking 20 goals in 14 games as a rover, full forward or forward flanker.

Hartley was born on 28 August 1922 at College Town (now Hackney), the youngest son of Gustav Klau and his wife Anna, née Schmeryl, parents of three boys and three girls.

He was only 16 when World War II intervened.  He enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force at Ceduna on 20 January 1943 and was a leading aircraftman in the 9 Repair and Servicing Unit when discharged on 24 January 1946.

According to John Gascoyne, author of a book on West Coast sporting teams, Hartley was not only “a great bloke” but also a wonderful  tennis player, football player and coach of the Ceduna Football Club.

Hartley, a baker, had two wives and seven children.  He was 93 when he died on 16 February 2015

P Robins, D Cox August 2019

* Picture kindly supplied by John Gascoyne