Maurie "Mocha" Dunstan is a former Australian rules football

Australian rules football

Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...

er who played with Collingwood

Collingwood Football Club

The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...

 in the Victorian Football League

Australian Football League

The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...

 (VFL).

Dunstan had been on Collingwood's radar since his late teens but was only convinced by the club to join them after spending two seasons with Preston

Northern Bullants

Northern Blues Football Club is a long-established Australian rules football club based in Preston and currently playing in the Victorian Football League representing the central and outer areas of Melbourne...

 in the Victorian Football Association

Victorian Football League

The Victorian Football League which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association , taking its new name as from the 1996 season, is the premier Australian rules football league in Victoria The Victorian Football League (VFL) which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association...

. During his early career at Collingwood, the young centre half-forward

Centre half-forward

In Australian rules football, the centre half-forward is a position on the half-forward line of a football field. The directly opposing player is a Centre-Half-Back....

 was also serving an apprenticeship in an engineering unit of the Australian Army

Australian Army

The Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of Defence commands the Australian Defence Force , the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army...

.

Although he missed the first four rounds of the 1951 VFL season

1951 VFL season

Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League season of 1951.-Premiership season:In 1951, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus two substitute players, known as the 19th man and the 20th man...

, Dunstan topped Collingwood's goal-kicking with 40 goals, including a bag of eight against Hawthorn

Hawthorn Football Club

The Hawthorn Football Club, nicknamed the Hawks, is a professional Australian rules football club in the Australian Football League . The club, founded in 1902, is the youngest of the Victorian-based teams in the AFL. The team play in Brown & Gold vertically striped guernseys...

 at Glenferrie Oval

Glenferrie Oval

Glenferrie Oval is an Australian rules football stadium located in Hawthorn, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.It is the historic home of and is synonymous with the Hawthorn Football Club, who played there from 1903 and as a VFL/AFL club from 1925–1973, and retained the ground as an...

. He was their top goal-kicker again in 1952, when he kicked 43 goals, but was goal-less in the finals series and finished on the losing team in the 1952 VFL Grand Final

1952 VFL Grand Final

The 1952 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Geelong Football Club and Collingwood Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 27 September 1952. It was the 56th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers...

.

He played in 13 of the 18 rounds in the 1953 home and away season but was then struck down with appendicitis

Appendicitis

Appendicitis is a condition characterized by inflammation of the appendix. It is classified as a medical emergency and many cases require removal of the inflamed appendix, either by laparotomy or laparoscopy. Untreated, mortality is high, mainly because of the risk of rupture leading to...

. As a result of his illness, as well as a leg injury, he missed out on participating in Collingwood's 12th premiership, with Terry Waites

Terry Waites

Terry Waites was an Australian rules footballer who played for Collingwood in the Victorian Football League during the 1950s....

 replacing him in the team for the finals.

His misfortunes in 1953 weren't the only time he had spells on the sidelines, over the course of his short career he suffered breaks on his ankle, hands, toe and ribs.

Dunstan later coached Fish Creek in the Alberton Football League

Alberton Football League

The Alberton Football League is an Australian rules football league covering the South Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia.-History:The Alberton Football League was formed in 1946, replacing the earlier Alberton Football Association, and comprised eight clubs—Carrajung, Devon, Foster, Ramblers,...

. Two sons, Graeme Dunstan

Graeme Dunstan (footballer)

Graeme Dunstan is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Collingwood in the Victorian Football League and Norwood in the South Australian National Football League ....

 and Ian Dunstan

Ian Dunstan

Ian Dunstan is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Footscray in the Victorian Football League ....

, would both be recruited to the VFL from Fish Creek.