Peter Lane, Richmond’s high-flying full-forward who, at the age of only 18, kicked 116 goals in the Under 19s 1980 premiership season, has died. He was 63.
His death, after a long battle with cancer, was announced by the Richmond Former Players and Officials President and dear friend Peter Williams. “RIP my friend and treasured mate. You will be fondly remembered and never forgotten.”
Chronologically, Lane was the fifth Richmond footballer across all levels of the Club to kick a century in a season. Only club Immortal Jack Titus (1940 Snrs), Graham Teasdale (1973 U19s/Res/Snrs combined), Mark Jackson (1980 Res), and Michael Roach (1980 Snrs) achieved the rare feat before him.
The newsworthy performances of Lane, Jackson and Roach each booting 100 goals in 1980 was captured in a classic Peter Ward photograph at the Punt Road Ground.
The image would embed Lane’s achievement forever into the subconscious of Tiger fans of a certain age.
Newspaper cutting from Peter Lane’s scrapbook, now held in the Richmond club archives.
In September 2019, the modest Lane agreed (after some gentle prodding from his old teammates) to finally be interviewed for the first time on the record, by Club Historian Rhett Bartlett, about his Richmond career.
By his own admission he was “a footnote in history” and still amazed that he was remembered by footy fans despite having never played a Senior game.
“I’d be sitting at work and my phone would go off like a pokies jackpot, and that would be friends or family saying ‘they’re on the radio, they’re looking for you.’”
“Rhett, I’m grateful for the Club for the opportunity it gave me and quietly surprised and pleased inwardly that people do remember me”.
During the 1980 season he and Roach would occasionally train together in the old gym under the Jack Dyer Grandstand, focussing on improving their leap by standing on a trainer’s bench, jumping onto the ground and then springing up onto another bench.
The crowning achievement of his 100th goal occurred against North Melbourne on August 23, 1980. It was a red-letter day in the club’s history as in the senior game later that afternoon, Roach kicked his 101st goal and surpassed Jack Titus’ Club season record.
Lane later donated his 100th goal football to the Club’s Museum.
The football Peter Lane used to kick his 100th goal. Now in Club storage.
In the 1980 Final Series the bearded 6ft 1 Lane, wearing the long-sleeved No.2, booted six goals against Geelong in the Second Semi-Final, and then six goals against Fitzroy in the Premiership win.
Coached by former Richmond premiership player Wayne Walsh, the Tigers 15.13.103 defeated Fitzroy 13.11.89.
“He’s a funny guy, he’s a good guy,” Lane said of his coach Walsh, “but I couldn’t read him. I was never sure if he was having a joke, which he did occasionally, or whether he was deadly serious. He understood what each player required in their own style, and coached them individually rather than as a big group.”
Off the field, Lane studied science at university and later business and marketing, while on the field he was blessed with quickness off the mark and a great spring.
Of his kicking action (seen in the video below), Lane explained that when he came to Richmond, he wasn’t a reliable shot for goal.
“One of the things they did to me was try and make me lean forward a lot more. I think they thought the problem was in the ball drop. So, if there is any footage, you’ll see me leaning right over with the ball just about off the toe of my boot, which made it hard to kick any distance.”
Incredibly, the Premiership would be his last ever match for the Tigers.
Lane would never play a Reserves game (that full-forward spot was taken by Mark Jackson), and so the Club transferred him to City South in Tasmania during the 1981 pre-season.
“I think they knew I wasn’t absolutely committed to it as well. I wasn’t the greatest trainer in the world, maybe a bit lazy, and a bit too interested in other things at that stage.”
He ended up playing State of Origin football for Tasmania, then played in Western Australia as well as the Northern Territory and along the way did pre-season training with Essendon and Footscray.
Born in NSW, Lane played Rugby League until the age of 12 when his family then moved to Box Hill in Victoria and he took up Aussie Rules Football.
At the age of 15 he played for Blackburn Seniors in First Division of the Eastern Footy League. Lining up at centre half-forward, his opponent that day was former Richmond player and then East Ringwood captain-coach Ron Thomas, who saw first-hand Lane’s potential and passed his name onto the Richmond Football Club.
In total, Lane played just two years for the Richmond U19s, for 40 games and 186 goals - the most goals in the club’s U19s history.
He won the club goalkicking in 1979 with 70 goals (despite missing several games with a broken ankle), followed by the club and competition goalkicking in 1980.
After playing in the 1980 Grand Final victory in the morning, Lane didn’t stay to watch the senior team thump Collingwood, instead selling his pass out ticket for $20 and heading to a mate’s place to watch the game on TV.
Of the regrets he had about not staying at Tigerland after that season, Lane seemed more disappointed that he didn’t get to know the volunteers, officials and supporters at the club better.
In an email correspondence to me after our recorded interview, he remembered being handed an unaddressed envelope by a trainer after every match containing a $10 note.
“I wasn’t sure what to do at first, ask the ‘postman’ where did it come from, what should I do with it? Turned out an older chap, alone in life, living a few streets from Punt Road who had barracked for Richmond all his life was also a ‘Peter Lane’ and was just rapt that his name was running around in a Tigers jumper”.
“He was always gone before I could thank him. I never met him, according to the trainers he wouldn’t consider coming in to the sheds, too humble/self-effacing. It’s for people like him I regret not going on, not myself”.
The U19 team list from 1980 Grand Final Football Record.
