North Ballarat mourn the loss of Kevin Polkinghorne

The North Ballarat Football Club is celebrating the life of one of its biggest names. Here is his remarkable legacy as told by his children.

For Kevin Polkinghorne there was nothing like home, the North Ballarat Football Club.

The Roosters lost a club great on Friday night who lived, breathed and cared greatly for the black and white.

Polkinghorne passed away at the age of 78 after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease.

For more than 60 years he played, coached and was involved with the club.

He also made the Polkinghorne surname a major part of the club with his sons, grandsons and granddaughters all playing for the club and excelling in their own way.

“He was a pretty loyal guy who loved and lived for his footy club and his kids,” his son Travis said.

“His life revolved around sport and the relationships and friendships which came with that.

“He was a pretty good sportsperson himself and he had a good footy background and pedigree.”

Born in 1944, Polkinghorne impressed at the Roosters early, winning and captaining an under-16s premiership before getting a shot in the seniors at the age of 17.

He joined the club with his father at the time a committee member.

A prolific ball winning midfielder, he etched himself in history in 1963, by being named best on ground in North Ballarat’s second premiership.

Kevin Polkinghorne posing for a photo. Picture: Contributed.

He played 115 games for the club before his work took him to Portland.

“He could have gone further had things played out differently,” Travis said.

“He had Carlton and Geelong (in the VFL) regularly contacting him to go down there.”

After playing for Heywood in the Western Border league for a couple of seasons, Polkinghorne returned to Ballarat and coached Gordon in the Central Highlands league for two years.

Then he came back home to North Ballarat and coached the Roosters juniors while also seeing his sons play for the club.

His three sons Travis, John and Grant all would win under-16 premierships with Polkinghorne coaching the team involving John.

In 1987, they defeated Maryborough.

“He was pretty proud about that,” Travis said.

“His biggest achievement, most proud one, was he coached the (team).

“Out 0f that team three or four kids went and had AFL involvement.”

As his sons got older, he stepped away from the club as each had their own career.

All three would win best-and-fairests at the club in seniors and all three won premierships.

Kevin Polkinghorne with his sons John (left), Travis and Grant. Picture: Contributed.

John would go on to play in the SANFL, playing more than 100 games for South Adelaide, after being originally drafted into the AFL by Hawthorn.

The greatest sporting success in the family though came from Polkinghorne’s daughter Briony who represented Australia in multiple World Cups in indoor cricket.

She won the 2014 and 2017 Cups, only recently retiring as captain of the team.

Travis said their success came from the simple advice their father gave years ago.

“We were lucky he was supportive and didn’t interfere too much,” he said.

“A lot of that (our success) was around work ethic and how to attack the footy.

“’Smother, tackle, chase’ he’d say and the rest would evolve out of that. Some of (our success) has been genes but just the determination to work hard (from him) and get the best out of yourselves.

“We all had our limitations but we did our best with what we were given.”

In recent years Polkinghorne has been proud of his grandsons and granddaughters playing senior football and netball.

On Saturday against Ballarat, players wore black armbands in his honour.

And his three grandsons delivered him a win, by 71 points, against the Swans.

Riley and Ryan Polkinghorne (left) and Brock Leonard (right) with their grandfather Kevin Polkinghorne. Picture: Supplied.

Riley Polkinghorne and Brock Leonard, his grandsons, were among the best on ground with Ryan Polkinghorne also involved.

His granddaughters, Ava and Elly Polkinghorne, also played in B-grade and C-grade with Ava winning but Elly not able to overcome a strong Swans outfit on the day.

Travis said his grandkids and their sporting achievement meant the world to him.

Just as much as the club.

“He loved his footy club,” Travis said.

“We knew that but it was highlighted when he got to spend his time with his sister (recently) and it revolved around their time as kids and his time at North Ballarat.”

Travis said the family was hoping he would make it to the upcoming 60th anniversary celebration of the premiership but he wasn’t able to get there.

He will also miss his son John being inducted into the North Ballarat Hall of Fame later this year to join Travis who was inducted recently.

Away from the club, Polkinghorne was also a great tennis player, winning the Ballarat singles and doubles title at the age of 18 and playing on the centre court at Kooyong Tennis Club at the age of 19.

In Ballarat, he went to school at Urquhart Street Primary School and Maccarthur Street Primary before going to North Ballarat Technical School.

He then worked as a trainee manager at Myer before working in the administration office at the Shire of Ballarat before moving to Portland.

After he returned he ran a small business, KP and LP Motors in Gilles Street, Wendouree, before working at McCains for more than two decades.

Details of Polkinghorne’s funeral will be released in coming days.