James Anderson

James Duncan Anderson (17 December 1931 – 19 August 1996) was an Australian footballer and first-class cricketer.

Sporting career Anderson played as a full-forward in the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA) from 1950 to 1954. He played four seasons with the University Blues, followed by a season with the Old Melburnians. He was noted for his prolific goalkicking and was the leading goalkicker in Section A in every season he played in, the only player to have done so. He was the vice-captain of the club during the 1952 season, where the Blues went on win their first Premiership title, defeating Ormond in the Grand Final, with Anderson scoring ten of the twenty goals that Blues put past Ormond. He took on a dual role in the 1953 season, acting as both captain and coach of the club, as the Blues finished as runners-up. Anderson also represented Victoria as an amateur in eight matches, including at the 1951 and 1953 AAFC Carnivals.

In August 1954, Anderson left Australia to study in the United Kingdom, attending Magdalen College, Oxford. In December, he was named Blue of the Game in the annual Australian rules match between Oxford and Cambridge, where he played alongside future Prime Minister Bob Hawke. His best bowling of 4/68 came against Yorkshire.

Despite having not played competitive football for two years, Anderson appeared in a demonstration match at the 1956 Summer Olympics. He was selected to play in a team representing the Victorian Amateur Football Association against a combined team of players from the Victorian Football League (VFL) and the Victorian Football Association (VFA). Although the combined VFL/VFA team were favoured to win the match, some football journalists backed the VAFA team, citing Anderson's performances at both team training and in a "special" practice match as reasons for a potential upset. On 7 December, the VAFA team were victorious, defeating the combined team by 26 points. Anderson finished the match with three goals.

Death In later life, Anderson moved to Canberra, working for the ANZ bank. He died in August 1996 after a short illness.