Peter Eakins 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 VFL

Australian Football League

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

 during the early 1970s.

Eakins started his career in Western Australia at the Subiaco Football Club

Subiaco Football Club

The Subiaco Football Club, nicknamed the Lions, is an Australian rules football club in the West Australian Football League . It was founded in 1896, and admitted to the WAFL in 1901, along with North Fremantle...

, making his debut in 1966. He was a good spoiler of the ball and had an exceptionally long kick. First selected to represent his state in 1968, Eakins became a regular at interstate contests and won a Tassie Medal

Tassie Medal

The Tassie Medal was awarded to the outstanding player at each Australian rules football Interstate Carnival or Australian interstate championship series held between 1937 and 1988 with the exception of the 1975 knock-out series....

 for his performance at the 1969 Adelaide Carnival

1969 Adelaide Carnival

The 1969 Adelaide Carnival was the 17th edition of the Australian National Football Carnival, an Australian rules football interstate competition....

 as well as getting selected to the All-Australian team

All-Australian Team

The All-Australian Team is an all star team of Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. It represents a complete team, including interchange players and a coach, of the best performed during the season....

 as a centre half-back.

Collingwood recruited him soon after and he was a back pocket

Back pocket

In Australian rules football, the back pocket refers to a position on the field deep in defence.Back pocket players, situated in the backline, need to have good spoiling skills and usually, quality back-pockets are noted for their hardness....

 in their losing 1970 VFL Grand Final

1970 VFL Grand Final

The 1970 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Carlton Football Club and Collingwood Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 26 September 1970. It was the 74th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine...

side. His time in Victoria was hindered by injuries and he returned to Subiaco after three seasons before retiring at the age of just 26.