BIO

Algernon Millhouse, better known as Algy, was a complete package player. Equally comfortable in any position on the ground, Millhouse consistently ranked in the best players lists throughout his career at Norwood.

A man who took his commitments seriously, Millhouse might never have played a match due to his determination to honour his work and study arrangements. Were it not for a career change brought on by a local job offer from an ex-Norwood man, Millhouse’s extraordinary ability may have been lost to the game.

Having captained his junior club in the Barrier Ranges Association, Millhouse assumed a leadership role at Norwood before ever playing a game for the club. He took to the blackboard to share his game knowledge with younger players, and even the club’s official captain and coach would seek his advice and assistance on match day.

He was widely renowned for his clean disposal by foot, particularly a consistently accurate stab-pass. Millhouse was also capable of long goals from the midfield, but he remained an unselfish player who could always be relied upon to make the right decision for the team.

Although a capable ruckman, it was his work as a rover that earned him the title of Adelaide’s best footballer in 1912, and this accolade led him to decline the offer of vice-captain for the 1913 season in order to join Melbourne and later St. Kilda in the VFL. His contribution to the latter club is credited as a factor in St. Kilda’s charge to the 1913 Grand Final, which they lost to Fitzroy.

Millhouse returned to Norwood in 1914, where he finally became captain of the club.

Like many other footballers, Millhouse answered the call when war broke out in 1915, and his brilliant career came to an end when he left Australia in 1916. Returning home at the end of the war in 1919, Millhouse never returned to football, and he died in Richmond, Victoria in 1948, aged 61.


F Thompson March 2013