Brian Kann (21 July 1933 – 21 May 2019) was an Australian rules footballer who played with Hawthorn in the Victorian Football League (VFL).

Brian Kann
Personal information
Full name Brian Eugene Kann
Date of birth 21 July 1933
Date of death 21 May 2019(2019-05-21) (aged 85)
Original team(s) Hawthorn Colts
Debut Round 13, 1954, Hawthorn vs. St Kilda, at Glenferrie Oval
Height 178 cm (5 ft 10 in)
Weight 82 kg (181 lb)
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
1954–1959 Hawthorn 57 (0)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1959.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Kann, who went to Melbourne High School, started out in the Hawthorn Colts.[1][2] He played senior football at Hawthorn for six seasons, from 1954 to 1959.[2][3] A defender, Kann was part of Hawthorn's historic 1957 side, which qualified for the VFL finals for the first time in the club's history.[2][3] He played in Hawthorn's semi final win over Carlton and preliminary final loss to Melbourne.[3] Over the next two years, Kann made only seven league appearances, but did captain the Hawthorn reserves to the 1958 and 1959 premierships.[1]

In 1960, Kann was captain-coach of Moorabbin, which finished the regular season in sixth position, to make the Victorian Football Association finals.[4][5] They were eliminated from the finals by Yarraville, at the quarter-final stage.[6]

Also a district cricketer, Kann played for the Fitzroy Cricket Club and in his youth represented the Victorian Schoolboys.[1][7] He was a member of Fitzroy's 1953/54 premiership side.[1]

In 1995, his son Julien Kann was initiator and founder of the Munich Kangaroos in Germany, as well as founding member of the Australian Football League Germany in 1999.[8][9]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c d "Past Player Profile - Brian Kann". Fitzroy Doncaster Cricket Club.
  2. ^ a b c Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2007). The Encyclopedia Of AFL Footballers. BAS Publishing. ISBN 9781920910785.
  3. ^ a b c "Brian Kann". AFL Tables.
  4. ^ The Age, "Moorabbin Shows It Will be Threat", 19 April 1960, p. 9
  5. ^ Scot Palmer (29 August 1960). "Two VFA finals on same day". The Sun News-Pictorial. Melbourne, Vic. p. 47.
  6. ^ Scot Palmer (5 September 1960). "Dull games won VFA no friends". The Sun News-Pictorial. Melbourne, Vic. p. 48.
  7. ^ The Age, "Incidents in District Play", 6 March 1956, p. 1
  8. ^ Kate O'Halloran: AFL Germany Expands, AFL Community, 24 February 2012.
  9. ^ Christian Stüwe: Kangaroos gegen Emus im Hirschgarten – Australian Football: Eine Vollkontakt-Sportart, die aussieht wie Rugby, feiert in München bald 20-jähriges Jubiläum, Münchner Merkur, 23 June 2015.