It's fair to say that Footscray's opening game of the 1958 season wasn't a particularly happy occasion. The Bulldogs were blown away by Collingwood at Western Oval, to the tune of 54 points.
But there was a bright moment on that dark day. The Dogs only kicked four goals for the match, but three of those were kicked by the two Bulldogs making their VFL debuts that day. Ron Howard kicked two, and a tall 19-year-old named John Schultz kicked one.
While Howard would go on to play 30 games over the three seasons, John Schultz would leave an indelible mark on the Footscray Football Club over his 11-season playing career, and for many years beyond.
To this day, Schultz remains one of the Club's icons.
Hailing from Boort, a hamlet found half-way between Bendigo and Swan Hill, Schultz had displayed brilliant form in the 1958 pre-season, and was touted in the media as the ‘League recruit of the year’.
While the media is often accused of hyperbole, that forecast proved to be accurate. Schultz became a permanent member of the Bulldogs immediately, playing every game in his debut season.
Schultz's first game, which came on this day 62 years ago, was the proverbial baptism of fire. The first time he went near the ball he was flattened and lost two teeth. Despite that trauma, he went on to be one of Footscray's best on the day.
One of the league's gentle giants, Schultz forged a reputation as talented and scrupulously fair ruckman over the next decade.
This status was backed up by the five best-and-fairest awards he won with the Bulldogs, in 1960, 1962, 1964, 1965 and 1966. The first of those was accompanied by the league's greatest individual award, the Brownlow Medal.
Schultz played a pivotal role in the Bulldogs' rise up the ladder in 1961, Footscray making it to just its second-ever VFL Grand Final in that year. He was one of the Dogs' best that day.
The big ruckman called an end to his playing days in 1968, after 188 fine games. He was only 29 and still in peak form, but decided to devote his time to his family's grocery business.
While work became a focus, Schulz retained his Bulldogs connection. If anything, he actually strengthened that connection after his playing days, as a mentor and father figure.
Now 81, he remains a familiar figure at VU Whitten Oval and at most Bulldogs games, offering priceless advice and guidance to today's Doggies players.
When he was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Famed in 1996, he was described as a "Rucking giant who never let the side down. Set the standard for the modern ruckman." To that could be added, "A fine upstanding citizen who epitomises the Bulldog spirit."
That Bulldog spirit took the Western Bulldogs to a premiership in 2016, and John Schultz was given the distinction of presenting the premiership cup to Easton Wood and Bob Murphy.
No Bulldog has ever been more deserving of such an honour.
