Bill Young

Biography

William Desmond Young (6 June 1931 – 4 March 2020) was an Australian rules footballer who played with the St Kilda Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL).

Young was an all-round sportsman, a top goal scorer in country football and a cricketer who once top-scored for a Victorian country team against England. He was also a well-performed track cyclist, represented Country Victoria at tennis and later in life was an A-grade squash player. He is widely regarded as the best all-round sportsman to come out of Gippsland.

In 1948, 1950, 1952, 1954 and 1955, Young was leading goalkicker in the Gippsland Football League, kicking 160 goals in 1954 and 136 in 1955. His best efforts were 26 goals in a game in 1950 and 22 in 1954.

Young debuted aged 25 with the St Kilda Football Club at full-forward in 1956, kicking 56 goals in his debut year and winning the VFL's leading goalkicker award.

Being the first individually contracted player for £700 from Stratford he was St Kilda's leading goal-kicker from 1956 to 1960, including three years in a row (1956–1958) where he tallied 56 goals for the year.

Blair Campbell credited him with inventing the reverse punt shot at goal, now generally known as a banana kick. However, it is now believed the history of the banana kick goes back to South Melbourne Football Club's Allen Burns, who was described as kicking a banana kick in an article from the 1890s. Nevertheless, Young's use—whether learned or rediscovered independently—helped inspire Campbell and brought the kick into the mainstream.