Geelong Sports Museum is celebrating the life and career of one of the most influential Cats players ever.
The museum’s latest exhibition is centred on Graham ‘Polly’ Farmer, including artefacts and images from the Bob Gartland collection and the Polly Farmer Foundation.
Hailed as ‘the greatest big man ever’, Farmer played 101 games for Geelong between 1962 and 1967, winning a premiership, receiving two Carji Greeves medals and captaining the club for three years.
Kardinia Park Stadium Trust chief executive Gerard Griffin said the exhibition, which opened on Thursday, March 27, was “a tribute to a man adored by fans who saw him as a friend”.
“Polly Farmer’s name is by far the one we hear most from visitors to Geelong Sports Museum,” Mr Griffin said.
“Our childhood heroes still hold a special place in our hearts, and this is certainly the case for anyone who saw Polly play.
“Polly joined the Geelong Cats with much hype. He was an incredible footballer in Western Australia and a huge coup for the Cats, helping them to a premiership in 1963.
“Polly was key to the success of the Cats that year, but it was his influence on the game of football that people remember the most.”
Farmer changed the game of football through his ruck work and handballing skills, but perhaps his greatest impact was through the Polly Farmer Foundation, established in 1997.
The foundation’s Follow Your Dream program empowers more than 3000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students at 150 schools across Australia, including Geelong’s Northern Bay and Western Heights colleges.
Kim Farmer, daughter of Polly Farmer and Vice Chair of the Polly Farmer Foundation said she was “so proud for dad to be honoured in this exhibition”.
“It celebrates his profound connection with Geelong and the Cats and coincides with the recent establishment of our first Follow the Dream programs in Geelong,” Ms Farmer said.
“We thank Bob Gartland OAM, who with honour and respect holds dad’s football legacy closely, and we are delighted he shares some of it for this exhibition.”
