Leon Francis BAKER

Games: 64 games for Swan Districts and 86 games for Essendon.

Premiershps: 4 successive premierships, Swan Districts 1982, 1983, and Essendon 1984, 1985.

Honours: Selected in the Essendon All Star Team 1981- 2006; Highly skilled he had a short but brilliant career of  7 seasons; Represented Western Australia in interstate football; Fairest and Best for Swan Districts in 1983.

An enigmatic footballer with a wanderlust approach to the game. Originally from Victoria, he played in a number of country leagues before finally arriving at Bassendean Oval in 1981 to put the cream on top of the cake that coach John Todd had developed. He slotted into the midfield and played all 21 home-and-away games in his first season, plus the three finals before Swans bowed out in the grand final. He proved to be an incredibly gifted centreman and shared in the premiership the next season, but after that one flag he continued his travels across the Nullarbor. Only floods stopped him and he headed back to Perth for another season … and another premiership. He then went to Essendon (with Todd’s blessing) and added two more flags to complete his fifth successive grand final.