Carl Bleakley Willis (24 March 1893 – 12 May 1930) was an Australian sportsman who played Australian rules football with South Melbourne and University in the Victorian Football League (VFL) as well as first-class cricket for Victoria.
Family The son of Thomas Rupert Henry Willis (1860-1933),Deaths: Willis, The Argus, (Friday, 15 September 1933), p. 1. and Mary Wilson Willis (1867-1949),Death: Willis, The (Mount Gambier) Border Watch, (Saturday, 5 November 1949), p. 4. née Bleakley, Carl Bleakley Willis was born at Daylesford, Victoria on 24 March 1893.Births: Willis, The Argus, (Tuesday, 11 April 1893), p. 1.Births: Willis, The Australasian, (Saturday, 15 April 1893), p. 46.
Education Willis was educated at Wesley College, Melbourne, and the University of Melbourne, graduating with a Bachelor of Dental Science (BDSc) in December 1915.University of Melbourne: Degrees Conferred, The Argus, (Friday, 24 December 1915), p. 5.
Football University (VFL) He was a regular player for University in 1912, his first season.The University Team, The Leader, (Saturday, 4 May 1912), p. 29.
Tribunal He was suspended for four weeks after being reported by a steward for punching Fred Hanson in the match against St Kilda, at the M.C.G. on 18 May 1912.Growden (2019), p. 121.Rough Football: University Player Reported, The Argus, (Tuesday, 21 May 1912), p. 7.Rough Football: University Player Disqualified, The Argus, (Thursday, 23 May 1912), p. 5.Late Sporting News: Football League: University Player Disqualified, The Age, (Thursday, 23 May 1912), p. 8.
It was the first time in VFL history that a player had been suspended by a steward; and Willis was the only University player to be suspended during the club's VFL existence.Richardson (2016), p. 51.
South Melbourne (VFL) He was cleared from University to South Melbourne in the 1915 pre-season.Migration of Players, The Winner, (Wednesday, 21 April 1915), p. 6.
He captained South Melbourne in the 1921 season.
Pioneer Exhibition Game" (London, October 1916) He played for the (winning) Third Australian Divisional team in the famous "Pioneer Exhibition Game" of Australian Rules football, held in London, on Saturday, 28 October 1916. A news film was taken at the match.The original newsreel: The 2019 remastered and colourised version of the original newsreel:
Military service He enlisted in November 1915 and served as a dentist with the Australian Army Medical Corps Dental Detail.
He served in France in late 1916, but was gassed, hospitalised and returned to England, taking charge of a dental unit on Salisbury Plain.Growden (2019), p. 127. He rose to the rank of captain in July 1918.
Cricket His cricket career, which began in 1913–14, continued after he retired as a footballer. Willis represented the Australian Imperial Forces team in 1918 and 1919, and Victoria from 1914 to 1928. He was selected to tour New Zealand in 1920–21 with the Australian team but was unavailable.
Dentist He practised dentistry in the Melbourne suburb of Malvern until 1929, when he moved to Numurkah in northern Victoria and then to Tocumwal in New South Wales.Obituary: Mr. Carl Willis, The Jerilderie Herald and Urana Advertiser, (Thursday, 15 May 1930), p. 3.
Death He died of pneumonia on 12 May 1930 in Berrigan, New South Wales, and was buried at the Melbourne General Cemetery on 14 May 1930.Carl Willis Buried, The Herald, (Wednesday, 14 May 1930), p. 5.
See also List of Victoria first-class cricketers 1916 Pioneer Exhibition Game
Footnotes
References Photographs at third from left, middle row, at :File:Melbourne_University%27s_Inter-Varsity_Team_(Adelaide_1914).tiff, Group portrait of members of the AIF Cricket Eleven (D00685), collection of the Australian War Memorial, The (Melbourne) Herald, (Saturday, 10 January 1920), p.2, and Table Talk, (Thursday, 15 January 1920), p.15. Football Riot: An Angry Crowd: M.C.C. Ground Rushed: Player Reported, The Argus, (Monday, 9 August 1915), p. 8. Pioneer Exhibition Game Australian Football: in aid of British and French Red Cross Societies: 3rd Australian Division v. Australian Training Units at Queen's Club, West Kensington, on Saturday, October 28th, 1916, at 3pm, Wightman & Co., (London), 1919. Growden, G. (2019) Cricketers at War, ABC Books: Sydney. Holmesby, R. & Main, J. (2007) The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers. 7th ed. Melbourne: Bas Publishing. . Richardson, N. (2016) The Game of Their Lives, Pan Macmillan Australia: Sydney. A.I.F. Cricketer's death, The (Lismore) Northern Star, (Saturday, 11 May 1930), p.6. First World War Embarkation Roll: Lance-Corporal Carl Bleackley Willis (346), collection of the Australian War Memorial. First World War Nominal Roll: Captain Carl Bleackley Willis, collection of the Australian War Memorial. First World War Service Record: Captain Carl Bleackley Willis, National Archives of Australia.
External links
Cricinfo biography