Peter Kanis

Peter Kanis
Personal information
Full name Peter Nicholas Kanis
Date of birth (1931-04-13)13 April 1931
Date of death 25 November 2021(2021-11-25) (aged 90)[1]
Original team(s) Melbourne High
Height 175 cm (5 ft 9 in)
Weight 76 kg (168 lb)
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
1952–56 Hawthorn (VFL) 41 (11)
1959–60 Norwood (SAFL) 6 (0)
Total 47 (11)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1960.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Peter Nicholas Kanis (13 April 1931 – 25 November 2021) was an Australian rules footballer who played with Hawthorn in the Victorian Football League (VFL)[2] and Norwood in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL).[3]

Family[edit]

The son of Constantine Kanis (1898-1983), and Asimina Kanis (1902-1968), née Amonis, Peter Kanis was born on 13 April 1931.

Education[edit]

He attended Melbourne High School, and was the captain of the school's First XVIII.[4]

Hawthorn (VFL)[edit]

The VFL established a competition known as the Victorian Junior Football League in 1919; it was renamed "the Seconds" in 1924 (i.e., the clubs' Second XVIIIs), and "the Reserves" in 1960.[5] In between 1946 and 1959 the VFL conducted a "Thirds" competition (i.e., the clubs' Third XVIIIs), it was renamed "the Under-19s" in 1960. One of the important advantages of a "Thirds" team was seen to be that it "enable[d] players to move from team to team without the necessity of obtaining a clearance to rise from Third to Second Eighteen or vice versa".[6]

Although some sources indicate that Kanis came to Hawthorn via the Melbourne High School Old Boys Football Club (MHSOB) in the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA),[7] others indicate, more strongly, that he had risen through the Hawthorn system from playing with the "Thirds",[8] to playing with the "Seconds".[9][10] and, as well the fact that he was listed, by the MHSOB, as one of the "former AFL/VFL players who started their football at MHS and/or MHSOBFC",[11] suggests that the "or" applies in his case, and that he was recruited while still a student at Melbourne High School.

In his last match for the Hawthorn club he was the captain of the team that played in the 1956 (Seconds') first semi-final, against Richmond, at the MCG on 25 August 1956 — the Hawthorn Club's first-ever appearance in a VFL final in any grade[12] — and, although Hawthorn lost the match, 5.9 (39) to 9.12 (66), Kanis was one of the Hawthorn Seconds' best players.[13]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Kanis, Peter Nicholas
  2. ^ Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2014). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers: every AFL/VFL player since 1897 (10th ed.). Seaford, Victoria: BAS Publishing. p. 463. ISBN 978-1-921496-32-5.
  3. ^ "Redlegs Museum Players". www.redlegsmuseum.com.au. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  4. ^ Melbourne High Win From Adelaide, The Argus, (Saturday, 19 August 1950) p.10.
  5. ^ The Sporting World: A Look Ahead, The Age, (Wednesday, 12 March 1919), p.11; Smith, W.H. & Ogilvey, A., "The Football Season (Letter to the Editor)", The Age, (Thursday, 13 March 1919), p.6; Riley, M., "Class and Warfare: The MAFA and the VFL Seconds", Boyles Football Photos, 4 April 2014.
  6. ^ Second Played Badly Until Near End, The (Emerald Hill) Record, (Saturday, 16 June 1945), p.3.
  7. ^ For example, Hawthorn, The Argus, (Friday, 9 July 1954), p.17.
  8. ^ Hawthorn Form Impressive, The Sporting Globe, (Saturday, 7 April 1951), p.10; Many Hawthorn Recruits, The Herald, (Saturday, 7 April 1951), p.11.
  9. ^ Listed as 19th man in the Hawthorn Seconds team to play Collingwood on 13 May 1950 ([1] League Seconds' Teams for Tomorrow, The Argus, (Friday, 12 May 1950), p.19]) -- i.e., ten weeks prior to him captaining the MHS First XVIII in Adelaide.
  10. ^ These Made League Lists: Hawthorn: New, The Age, (Monday, 14 April 1952), p.10.
  11. ^ Past Players Remembered, The Amateur Footballer, Vol.6, No.11, (8 July 2006), p.13.
  12. ^ Haby, Peter, "60 years ago: First Hawks final", Hawks Museum, 25 May 2016.
  13. ^ Richmond Seconds have Easy Victory, The Age, (Monday, 27 August 1956), p.16

References[edit]

External links[edit]