Geof Motley

Geofrey Peter Motley (3 January 1935 – 26 September 2023) was an Australian rules footballer and coach who played for South Australian National Football League (SANFL) side Port Adelaide. Motley was born near Alberton Oval, the home ground of the Port Adelaide Football Club, and grew up supporting Port Adelaide.

Motley was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the 1992 Australia Day Honours "for service to sport administration and Australian rules football."

Port Adelaide (1954–1966)
For eight seasons from 1959 to 1966, Motley captained the then dominating team of the SANFL,, including a stint as captain-coach from 1959 to 1961. He was the only man to appear in all nine of the Magpies' premiership teams between 1954 and 1965. Motley played a total of 258 games for Port between 1953 and 1966 and also represented South Australia on 28 occasions.

During his career, Motley was never dropped from the team, nor was he reported. In this era, not being reported for foul play was a rarity for a player as having a certain amount of mongrel or thuggery was seen as commonplace.

Motley was named Port Adelaide's best and fairest player in 1958, 1959, 1963, and 1965; and won the Magarey Medal in 1964.

North Adelaide coach (1967–1969)
Following his playing retirement, Motley went on to coach North Adelaide from 1967 to 1969, taking the club to third, third, and fifth place respectively. The Roosters won the minor premiership in 1967 but were unable to compete successfully against and  in the major round. Under Motley's tutelage, Australian Football Hall of Fame Legend Barrie Robran debuted and won his first Magarey Medal.

Honours
After retiring, Motley was bestowed with several honours including life membership of Port Adelaide and the SANFL, and membership of the South Australian Football Hall of Fame and the Australian Football Hall of Fame. In 2001, Motley was named on a half-back flank in Port Adelaide's 'Greatest Team of All Time'.

Personal life
Motley was married to fellow sportsperson Gaynor Motley (Flanagan), who represented Australia in basketball (competing in the first world championships in Rio de Janeiro) and netball, as well as South Australia in softball. The pair were married until Gaynor's death in 1999.

Their son, Peter, played for rival SANFL club Sturt and Victorian Football League (VFL) club Carlton, while Motley's second cousin was Port Adelaide captain Warren Tredrea.

Death
Motley died on 26 September 2023, at the age of 88.