BEAUMONT, Steve

Steve Beaumont was a tough, nuggety rover who came from Cooee in Tasmania. He had represented Tasmania before joining Essendon and he was leading goalkicker in the NWFU in 1972.

A fiery player, he was reported in just his third game and was suspended for three matches. He was reported twice more but not suspended again.

He once kicked five goals against Carlton but is better remembered for another game against Carlton in 1975 when he was in the think of a violent brawl involving most of the players. He later joked that he was probably the only player not to be reported.

He once said that Kevin Sheedy was one of his hardest opponents.

He had difficulty adjusting to the tempo of League football and returned to Tasmania in 1977 to play with Cooee. After a two-year stint at Burnie in 1980 and 1981, he returned to Cooee as captain-coach. He moved to full-forward and, in 1984, kicked a club record 147 goals, averaging eight a match. That same year, he lost the competition's best and fairest award on a countback.

In 1985 he captain-coached Cooee to third place and was planning to play on in 1986 when he was seriously injured in a car crash, in which his friend was killed, and he decided to retired. Overall, he had a very successful career in Tasmania, as between 1977 and 1985, he was a member of three premiership teams and played in three other grand finals.

Beaumont later returned to Melbourne and worked for Intercontinental Metals.