Decorated boundary umpire Mitch Le Fevre and accomplished George Town native Luke Crane are set to be inducted into the Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame at the upcoming Gala Dinner at Wrest Point on the 23rd of June, 2018.
Born in Launceston in 1983, Mitch Le Fevre began his umpiring career as a 14-year-old and was identified as a promising talent from an early age.
Le Fevre was soon umpiring senior NTFL and TFL Statewide League games before officiating four TAC Cup matches in 1999.
With the admission of the Tasmanian Devils to the VFL in 2001, Le Fevre initially umpired Devils games played in northern Tasmania before going on to officiate matches statewide.
Picked to umpire the 2004 VFL Grand Final between Sandringham and Port Melbourne, Le Fevre was subsequently chosen to officiate in the 2005 and 2006 VFL deciders as well, the latter after making a permanent move to the mainland.
Le Fevre’s move paid almost immediate dividends, being appointed to the AFL’s Elite Panel in 2007, making his senior AFL debut in Round 3 of that season. Injuries curtailed the remainder of his 2007 season, but he made the most of his opportunities the following year, being selected to run the boundary in two final matches.
Le Fevre has umpired more than 200 AFL senior matches since, with the highlight coming in 2017 when he was selected to appear in his first AFL Grand Final.
Le Fevre’s efforts have seen him recognised recently with Life Membership of the AFL Umpires Association as well as the Murray Williams Shield, a prestigious peer-voted AFLUA award recognising on-field excellence and positive contributions to the umpiring fraternity overall.
A native of George Town, Luke Crane, born in 1985, was an elite junior who represented Tasmania at U16 and U18 level, as well as with the Tassie Mariners in the TAC Cup.
Crane made his senior debut for George Town as a 15-year-old in 2001, and was a member of the NTFA premiership teams in 2002 and 2003 – the first of what would be eight consecutive flags for the club.
After he was unsuccessful in being drafted to the AFL, Crane relocated to Queensland in 2004 and joined QAFL side Zillmere, winning the club’s Best and Fairest award in each of the following three seasons, while also representing Queensland in interstate matches against Western Australia and the ACT.
Crane made the move to South Australia in 2007 to play with SANFL club Sturt, and after finishing runner-up in his first season, Crane won the Magarey Medal as the SANFL Best and Fairest in 2008 – becoming only the second Tasmanian to do so.
He was also twice named Sturt Best & Fairest, was selected three times (2007, 2008 and 2011) in the Adelaide Advertiser’s Team of the Year and represented South Australia in a famous win over Victoria in 2008. Premiership success, however, eluded him, a Grand Final loss in 2009 the closest he would get.
Crane retired from SANFL football after the 2013 season, subsequently joining Portland in Victoria’s Hampden Football League. After only one season, Crane was appointed playing coach in 2015, a position he has held for the past four years.
FOR TICKETS & INFORMATION FOR THE TASMANIAN HALL OF FAME GALA DINNER – elaine.lester@afl.com.au
Luke Crane (LEFT) pictured playing for Sturt in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL)
MITCH LE FEVRE
Umpire Inductee
NTFUA/VFLUA/AFLUA, Boundary Umpire, 1997-2018
Umpired 228 senior AFL matches, 2008-17
Umpired 13 senior AFL finals matches, 2008-17
Umpired 71 VFL matches, 1999-2014
Umpired 4 TAC Cup matches, 1999-2000
AFL Grand Final Boundary Umpire, 2017 (Richmond vs Adelaide)
VFL Grand Final Boundary Umpire 2004, 2005, 2006
AFL Umpires Association Life Member, 2017
LUKE CRANE
Player Inductee
Tassie Mariners/George Town/Zillmere/Sturt, Rover, 2001-2018
20 games for Tasmania U18/Tassie Mariners, 2001-02
31 games for George Town, 2001-03
60 games for Zillmere (QAFL), 2004-06
125 games for Sturt (SANFL), 2007-13
Portland (Hampden FL), 2014-18; playing coach 2015-18
George Town NTFA premierships, 2002, 2003
Sturt SANFL Grand Final team, 2009
Magarey Medal, 2008 (SANFL Best and Fairest); Runner-Up 2007
Sturt Best and Fairest 2007, 2011
Zillmere Best & Fairest 2004, 2005, 2006
Three representative games for Queensland, 2005-06
One representative game for South Australia, 2008
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