Allan La Fontaine

{{Infobox AFL biography

| name = Allan La Fontaine

| image = Allan LaFontaine 1928.jpg

| alt =

| caption =

| fullname = Allan Faulkner La Fontaine

| birth_date = 5 December 1910

| birth_place = Eskdale, Victoria, Australia

| death_date = {{death date and age|1999|08|14|1910|12|5|df=yes}}

| death_place = Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

| originalteam = University Blacks

| height = 175 cm

| weight = 81 kg

| position = Centreman

| statsend = 1945

| years1 = 1934–1942, 1945

| club1 = Melbourne

| games_goals1 = 171 (77)

| sooyears1 = 1934, 1936

| sooteam1 = Victoria

| soogames_goals1 = 2 (0)

| coachyears1 = 1949–1951

| coachclub1 = Melbourne

| coachgames_wins1 = 56 (25–31–0)

| careerhighlights = *3× VFL premierships: 1939, 1940, 1941

4× Keith 'Bluey' Truscott Medallist: 1935, 1936, 1941, 1942
Melbourne captain: 1936–1941
Melbourne Team of the Century (centre)
Australian Football Hall of Fame
Melbourne Hall of Fame
Harold Ball Memorial Trophy: 1934
St. Kevin's College, Melbourne: Team of the Century (centre)

}}

Allan Faulkner La Fontaine (5 December 1910 – 14 August 1999) was an Australian rules footballer who played with and coached Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL).

Private life

La Fontaine was born at the country town of Eskdale, Victoria. While still a youngster his parents, Cyrelle and Beatrice, brought the family to Melbourne where they settled in the suburb of Footscray. He had three brothers, Claude, Lionel and Donald. La Fontaine attended St Joseph's CBC North Melbourne (later St Joseph's College, Melbourne) from 1925 to 1929 where he earned the title Captain of College three years in a row; 1927, 1928 and 1929.Review of St. Joseph's Christian Brothers' College North Melbourne on the occasion of the Golden Jubilee 1903–1952, St Joseph's College, North Melbourne, 1953.

At school he made his mark as both an excellent athlete, handball player and footballer.St Joseph's College North Melbourne; Jubilee Review 1903–1928. St Joseph's College, North Melbourne, 1928 In 1930 he went on to complete his secondary education at St Kevin's College, Melbourne before proceeding to university where he was eventually granted Bachelor of Science in 1946.{{cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204948523|title=Prominent Sportsmen Get University Degrees|newspaper=The Age|location=Melbourne|date=23 December 1946|access-date=29 October 2015|page=4|via=National Library of Australia}}

La Fontaine enjoyed a variety of activities which included boxing, cricket and in 1936 working as a seaman on an oil tanker bound for America.{{cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article205248437|title=UNIVERSITY STUDENTS|newspaper=The Age|location=Melbourne|date=4 January 1936|access-date=29 October 2015 |page=10 |via=National Library of Australia}}

In July 1940, La Fontaine married Mary Williams at St Patrick's Cathedral.{{cite news|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article204411669|title=MANY BRIDES IN BLUE|newspaper=The Age|location=Melbourne|date=8 July 1940|access-date=29 October 2015|page=3|via=National Library of Australia}}

During World War II, he served as a Flying Officer with the RAAF between 1942 and 1945,[https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/12685233 Taylor, Percy, "Melbourne are Proud of their Great War Record", The Australasian, (Saturday, 24 June 1944), p.23.] and he saw action in New Guinea and the nearby islands.{{citation needed|date=June 2018}} Two of his brothers served in the Australian Army during the same conflict. On his return he took up his trade as an industrial chemist and analyst in a Melbourne business.{{citation needed|date=June 2018}}

La Fontaine died in Sydney in August 1999.

Football career

Recruited to the Old Paradians by its founder Lou Arthur, La Fontaine vindicated the transport magnate's faith by kicking 146 goals for the home-and-away season (152 including finals), which was easily a record in any Metropolitan Amateur Football Association (MAFA) division since the competition began in 1892.{{cite web |title=Leading Goalkickers – Premier C (C Section) |url=https://www.vafa.com.au/history/awards/goalkickers-premier-c/ |publisher=Victorian Amateur Football Association |access-date=15 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230315172128/https://www.vafa.com.au/history/awards/goalkickers-premier-c/ |archive-date=15 March 2023}}{{cite web |title=EAST MALVERN SUCCESSFUL |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/204149324 |publisher=The Age |access-date=19 December 2024 |page=8 |date=23 September 1929}}{{cite web |title=156 Goals in One Season |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/224407377 |publisher=Weekly Times |access-date=19 December 2024 |page=92 |date=28 September 1929}} His football career changed dramatically when he was later recruited from University Blacks. In his last amateur season in 1933, he kicked a record 197 goals for the season.{{cite web |title=1933 - La Fountain - 192 goals in 19 games! |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/11688861/522137# |via=Trove Newspapers |work=The Argus |access-date=27 December 2020 |pages=14 |date=4 September 1933}}

La Fontaine was considered a brilliant amateur full-forward, and was to earn his fame playing with the Melbourne Football Club as a centreman. He was appointed captain of Melbourne in 1936. He led the club to their hat-trick of premierships in 1939, 1940 and 1941. La Fontaine went on to coach Melbourne from 1949 until 1951.{{Ref AFL Encyc|4th|362}}

In 1996 La Fontaine was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame.[http://www.afl.com.au/aflhq/awards/halloffame/players/tabid/856/default.aspx Hall of Fame – Players] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524173325/http://www.afl.com.au/AFLHQ/Awards/HallofFame/Players/tabid/856/default.aspx |date=24 May 2011 }}

References

Sources

{{cite book|last=Ross|first=John|title=The Australian Football Hall of Fame|year=1999|publisher=HarperCollinsPublishers|location=Australia|isbn=0-7322-6426-X|page=87}}

[http://www.ww2roll.gov.au/Veteran.aspx?serviceId=R&veteranId=1053711 Second World War Nomonal Roll: Flying Officer Allan Faulkiner La Fontaine (119471).]

External links

{{AFL Tables|A/Allan_La_Fontaine}}
[http://www.boylesfootballphotos.net.au/Allan+LaFontaine Boyles Football Photos: Allan LaFontaine (sic).]
[http://demonwiki.org/Allan+La+Fontaine Demonwiki: Allan La Fontaine.]