Collingwood celebrated the respective careers of two former stars and one of the club’s longest serving administrators by awarding them with Life Membership at the club’s Annual General Meeting on Thursday evening.
The club bestowed Life Membership upon the recently retired Luke Ball, dual Copeland Trophy winner Mark Williams and David Emerson, the club’s long-standing Director of Stadia, Events and Community.
About Honorary Life Membership
The Collingwood Football Club first awarded Honorary Life Membership in 1901.
The award was introduced to recognise the outstanding contribution of those players who had played more than 10 years with the club, and also those officials, support staff, trainers and administrators who had given exceptional service.
It was regarded as the highest honour the club could bestow upon an individual. The first recipient was vice-president (and later president) Alfred Cross, while the first player to receive the honour was the mighty Bill Proudfoot, in 1902.
View the roll call of each Collingwood Life Member since 1901 on forever.collingwoodfc.com.au
Luke Ball (2010-2014)
Games: 81
Goals: 33
Honours: 2010 premiership side, 2011 pre-season premiership side, J.F. McHale Trophy (4th best-and-fairest) 2011, Jack Regan Trophy (5th best-and-fairest) 2010, Bob Rose Award (Best Player in Finals) 2010, Gavin Brown Award (Leading Desire Indicators) 2010-2011
A courageous, selfless footballer, Luke Ball could always be found scrapping hard beneath the packs and is always the last man to rise when the umpire calls for a ball-up.
When he arrived at Collingwood at the end of 2009, he filled the gap in the engine room left by Scott Burns and Paul Licuria, and was a key part in securing the club’s 15th premiership twelve months later.
Ball was a key figure in St Kilda's rise in the mid-2000s, but found the sea change he was after at Collingwood. One of the most consistent and respected players in the game, Ball managed to fight back from a serious knee reconstruction to reclaim his place in the centre square and left the game at the end of 2014 with the respect of teammates and opponents alike.
Mark Williams (1981-1986)
Games: 135
Goals: 178
Mark Williams, the son of South Australian legend Fos, was one of Collingwood’s leading lights during the first half of the 1980s.
Nicknamed ‘Choco’, Williams won the Copeland Trophy and represented Victoria in his first year as well as playing in the losing Grand Final side against Carlton.
The former Port Adelaide Magpie was made captain of the club in only his third season and proved to be a fine leader for the duration of his four seasons at the helm.
A gritty competitor, Williams was known for boring in for the ball and running out a match no matter what story the scoreboard told.
A strong mark and a ferocious tackler, Williams joined rare company when he won his second Copeland Trophy in 1985.
Williams proved himself in September when he kicked six goals in a 46-point win over Fitzroy in the 1984 Elimination Final. It contributed to a total of 53 goals for the season, enough to win him the Gordon Coventry Trophy as the team’s leading goalkicker.
At the end of the 1986 season, Williams left Victoria Park and headed for the Brisbane Bears.
He later coached Port Adelaide shortly after its AFL inception and led it to its first flag in the national competition in 2004.
David Emerson (1999-2015)
Director of Stadia, Events and Community
Emerson, who has been a key member of the club’s administration team for more than 15 years, is the first person to be honoured with Life Membership without playing experience behind him since Jack Kennedy (2002).
Currently the Director of Stadia, Events and Community, Emerson joined the club during the earliest days of its renascence under new President Eddie McGuire and has played a pivotal role in its rise as a football powerhouse.
Emerson began as the club’s Head of Marketing, taking care of departments such as sponsorship, events, corporate sales, merchandise and more, establishing Collingwood’s corporate strength.
He was a key player in Collingwood’s smooth transition from its spiritual home at Victoria Park to its current base at the Westpac Centre, where it has been since 2004.
In his time as Director of Stadia and Community, Emerson has helped oversee the club’s renewed presence with the Collingwood Football Club Community Centre at Victoria Park and remains a key driver in the development of the Community Centre at Olympic Park.
Emerson’s connection to Collingwood, and indeed Victoria Park, has its origins in his days as a cricketer for the Collingwood Cricket Club.
He played 304 matches for the club between 1980/1981 and 1997/1998, winning 13 consecutive Keith Stackpole Medals.
During his time at Collingwood, Emerson has helped oversee sponsorship deals including Emirates, Westpac, Adidas and Wizard Home Loans, making him a key player behind the scenes in the club’s premiership triumph in 2010.
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