Mark Bairstow

Mark Bairstow
Personal information
Full name	Mark Bairstow
Date of birth	24 July 1963 (1963-07-24) (age 48)
Original team	Lake Grace
Height/Weight	180 cm / 87 kg
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
1985 – 1986 1987 – 1994	South Fremantle Geelong	040 0(32) 146 (172)
1 Playing statistics to end of 1994 season .

Mark Bairstow (born 25 July 1963) is a former Australian rules footballer who played in both the Australian Football League (AFL) and the West Australian Football League (WAFL).

WAFL career

Bairstow came to South Fremantle Football Club from Lake Grace in 1985 and had an immediate impact, winning the WA Media Guild's Footballer of the Future award, representing Western Australia is a state match against South Australia, coming second to Wally Matera in South Fremantle's best and fairest award and equal third in the Sandover Medal. He was then named as captain in 1986 and represented WA twice more, won the Sandover Medal and South Fremantle's best and fairest award.^[1]

VFL/AFL career

As part of then-coach John Devine's mass-recruit-drive in 1986 and 1987, players such as Dwayne Russell, Billy Brownless, Bruce Lindner, Barry Stoneham as well as Bairstow were recruited by the Geelong Football Club. Bairstow signed with Geelong on 26 September 1986, five days before the 12 VFL clubs voted to allow a West Australian club (the West Coast Eagles) to join the competition.^[2]

Bairstow debuted for Geelong in 1987 and soon became Geelong's main ruck-rover. In the late 1980s, Geelong's midfield would be among the better in the then Victorian Football League (VFL) with Paul Couch, Andrew Bews and Bairstow teaming beautifully to supply the team's powerful forward line.

After Geelong's loss in the 1989 grand final, Bairstow retired from VFL football and returned home to Lake Grace, Western Australia to work on his family's farm, while playing for the football side there.^[3]

However, he returned in 1991 and gave Geelong fantastic drive from the centreline that paved the way for Geelong's Grand Final appearances in 1992 and 1994.

After the 1994 Grand Final defeat and Malcolm Blight's resignation as coach of the club, Bairstow was advised that he was no longer required at the club by Blight's former assistant, new coach Gary Ayres. Due to the nature of Bairstow's dismissal, he has seldom been back to the club.^[4]

References

1. ^ 1986 West Australian Football Register (24th ed.). Westralian Publishers. p. 10. 
2. ^ 1987 West Australian Football Register (25th ed.). Westralian Publishers. p. 84. 
3. ^ 1990 West Australian Football Register (28th ed.). Westralian Publishers. p. 68. 
4. ^ Niall, Jake; Geelong and the stray Cats; The Age; 2003-08-16

External links

• Full Points Footy Biography
• Mark Bairstow's statistics from AFL Tables

Sporting positions
Preceded by Andrew Bews	Geelong Football Club captain 1992–1994	Succeeded by Garry Hocking Gary Ablett Ken Hinkley Barry Stoneham

Persondata
Name	Bairstow, Mark
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1963-07-25
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death