Bob Lane (Australian footballer)
| Bob Lane | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Robert John Lane | ||
| Nickname(s) | Rocky | ||
| Date of birth | 12 February 1946 | ||
| Place of birth | Kerang, Victoria | ||
| Date of death | 13 July 1979 (aged 33) | ||
| Place of death | Kyalite, New South Wales | ||
| Original team(s) | Kerang | ||
| Height | 188 cm (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Weight | 85 kg (187 lb) | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1966 | Carlton | 2 (0) | |
|
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1966. | |||
| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Bob "Rocky" Lane (12 February 1946 – 13 July 1979) was an Victorian police detective who was murdered in the line of duty. He was also an Australian rules footballer who played 2 senior games with Carlton in the Victorian Football League (VFL).[1]
Lane, who hailed from Kerang, had joined the Victoria Police before he was recruited to Carlton. Former teammates remember him turning up to training in his police uniform. He managed only the briefest of opportunities at the VFL level, coming on late in the last quarter in both of his appearances. He transferred to Williamstown, and later transferred to the country as his career progressed. Lane was captain-coach of Lake Boga and later Lalbert in the Mid Murray Football League.
On 13 July 1979, working as a Detective Senior Constable with Victoria Police, Lane accompanied a suspect to a campsite across the state border at Kyalite New South Wales. While searching the caravan, the suspect shot Lane twice in the head with a rifle that he had previously hidden, killing him instantly. Following a massive manhunt[2] involving both Victorian and New South Wales police members,[3] the suspect was apprehended 7 days later[4] after he had dumped the police car in the river, and was sentenced to life in prison.[5][6] He was released just 13 years later.[7]
Lane left behind a wife and two daughters.
Notes
- ^ Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2009). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers: every AFL/VFL player since 1897 (8th ed.). Seaford, Victoria: BAS Publishing. p. 471. ISBN 978-1-921496-00-4.
- ^ Ballard, Steve (16 July 1979). "Force Erupts In Fury". The Age.
- ^ "WANTED: Teenage pair sought". The Sydney Morning Herald. 15 July 1979.
- ^ Murdoch, Lidsay (20 July 1979). "Man charged". The Age.
- ^ "Bob Lane: Blues Honour Policeman". Blueseum. 2006. Retrieved 16 September 2013.
- ^ "Man gets life for shooting detective". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2 July 1980.
- ^ Anderson, John. "INDEFINITE, INHUMANE, INEQUITABLE". University of New South Wales Law Journal.
External links
- Bob Lane's playing statistics from AFL Tables
- Bob Lane's profile at Blueseum
- On This Day - July 13, 1979 - Melbourne Murder Tours
- The Sydney Morning Herald - Jul 15, 1979 - "Rocky, the hero cop..."
- The Age - Jul 16, 1979 - "Police hunt murder couple in outback"
- The Sydney Morning Herald - Jul 19, 1979 - "Youth has vowed not to surrender police say"
- The Sydney Morning Herald - Oct 24, 1979 "Detective denies threat against murder suspect"
- The Age - Nov 6, 1979 - "Murder case"
- The Age - Oct 8, 1979 "Police urge trust fund action over widows"
- Victorian Police Blue Ribbon Foundation Honour Roll
- National Police Memorial Honour Roll
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