Neil Ferguson 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 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...

 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).

Ferguson came to Hawthorn from Melbourne High School

Melbourne High School

Melbourne High School is a selective entry state school for boys in years 9 to 12 located in the Melbourne suburb of South Yarra. Being a selective school, it is known mainly for its strong academic reputation...

 and was 18 when he made his VFL debut in 1964. He played as a ruckman

Ruckman (Australian rules football position)

In Australian rules football, a ruckman is typically a tall and athletic player who contests at centre bounces and stoppages . The ruckman is one of the most important players on the field...

 but towards the end of his time at Hawthorn was also used to good effect up forward, kicking 19 goals in 1968 and 21 goals in 1969.

The second half of his football career was spent in Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

, with five years at East Fremantle

East Fremantle Football Club

The East Fremantle Football Club, nicknamed the Sharks, is an Australian rules football club playing in the West Australian Football League . The team's home ground is East Fremantle Oval...

 and a season with Claremont

Claremont Football Club

The Claremont Football Club, nicknamed the Tigers, is an Australian rules football club in the West Australian Football League . Its official colours are navy blue and gold....

. He was the first ruckman in East Fremantle's 1974 premiership winning side.