Ray Schofield

{{short description|Australian rules footballer}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2016}}

{{Use Australian English|date=August 2016}}

{{Infobox AFL biography

| name = Ray Schofield

| image =

| fullname = Raymond John Schofield

| birth_date = {{birth date |1925|08|07|df=y}}

| birth_place = Subiaco, Western Australia

| death_date = 23 December 2017 (aged 92)

| death_place =

| originalteam = North Perth

| height =

| weight =

| position = full-back, full-forward

| statsend = 1958

| years1 = 1946–1958 The WAFL was an under-19s competition in 1943 due to the loss of players to serve in World War II.

| club1 = West Perth

| games_goals1 = 259 (169) These tallies exclude 18 games and 93 goals in the 1943 under-19s competition.

| careerhighlights = * 2 x WANFL premiership player (1949, 1951)

• 5x best and fairest winner {{WAFL|WP}} (1948, 1950, 1953-1955)

}}

Raymond John Schofield (7 August 1925 – 23 December 2017) was an Australian rules footballer who played with West Perth in the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL).{{cite web |title=Ray Schofield |url=https://australianfootball.com/players/player/ray%2Bschofield/15812 |publisher=Australian football |accessdate=20 August 2018}}

Schofield began his career as a full-forward in the wartime under-19 competition (which is excluded in some sources), and headed the WANFL goalkicking in 1943 with 93 goals. He did not play in 1944 or 1945 due to service with the Royal Australian Air Force in World War II.{{cite web| url=http://www.ww2roll.gov.au/Veteran.aspx?serviceId=R&veteranId=930860| title=WW2 Nominal Roll| publisher=Government of Australia| access-date=8 November 2015| archive-date=4 March 2016| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304052945/http://www.ww2roll.gov.au/Veteran.aspx?serviceId=R&veteranId=930860| url-status=live}}

Schofield would make his senior WANFL debut late in 1946, where he played as a forward in the Cardinals’ losing Grand Final team. In 1947, coach Stan “Pops” Heal moved Schofield to full-back after former spearhead Bill Baker was unsuccessful there,Atkinson, Brian; It’s a Grand Old Flag: a History and Comprehensive Statistical Analysis of the West Perth Football Club 1885-2007, p. 104 {{ISBN|9781921361395}} and he developed into a champion defender over the next decade.

At full-back, Ray Schofield was a five time best and fairest winner at West Perth, in 1948, 1950, and 1953 to 1955.{{cite web |url=http://www.fullpointsfooty.net/sa-sm.htm#Ray%20Schofield%20%28West%20Perth%29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040819062026/http://www.fullpointsfooty.net/sa-sm.htm#Ray%20Schofield%20%28West%20Perth%29 |url-status=usurped |archive-date=19 August 2004 |title=Full Points Footy: Ray Schofield (West Perth) |website=fullpointsfooty.net}} He played in West Perth’s 1949 and 1951 premiership teams, taking several critical marks to help win the latter encounter. In the twilight of his career, Schofield returned to attack, heading West Perth’s goalkicking again in 1957.

In his final season in 1958, Schofield played his 248th career game in Round 10 to break William "Digger" Thomas' long-standing West Australian elite football career games record, and two weeks later became the first West Australian elite football player to play 250 career games.

Schofield also played 22 interstate football matches for Western Australia, including matches at the 1950 Brisbane and 1953 Adelaide Carnivals. He was selected as the full-back in West Perth’s official "Team of the Century", and in 2004 was one of the inaugural inductees in the West Australian Football Hall of Fame.