Ray Huppatz

Raymond Keith Huppatz (born 6 October 1948) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Footscray and North Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and Woodville and Port Adelaide in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL).

Ray Huppatz
Personal information
Full name Raymond Keith Huppatz
Date of birth (1948-10-06) 6 October 1948
Height 170 cm (5 ft 7 in)
Weight 70 kg (154 lb)
Position(s) Rover
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
1966–1973 Woodville 125 (254)
1974–1977 Footscray 66 (74)
1978–1980 North Melbourne 19 (21)
1980–1981 Woodville 17 (0)
1982–1984 Port Adelaide 38 (54)
Total 265 (403)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1984.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Huppatz, a rover, had already made a name for himself in South Australian football prior to joining the VFL. He was a four-time best and fairest winner at Woodville, with awards in 1969, 1970, 1971 and 1973. From 1966 to 1973 he played 125 SANFL games for Woodville which saw him form a strong ruck combination with Malcolm Blight. In this period he regularly represented the South Australians at interstate football, including at the 1972 Perth Carnival.

Footscray recruited Huppatz for the 1974 VFL season and he made an immediate impression with 30 goals that year. In 1976 he was chosen to represent Victoria in a game against Western Australia. He finished his Victorian career with a stint at North Melbourne and he kicked two goals from the forward pocket in the 1978 Grand Final loss to Hawthorn. A knee injury kept him out of the entire 1979 season and he managed just seven games in 1980.

After returning to South Australia he played a further season with Woodville to bring his final club games tally to 142. He spent his final four years at Port Adelaide but his appearances were far from regular and he finished with 38 games.

In 2003 he was inducted into the South Australian Football Hall of Fame.

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