Rod Duggan’s time at East Perth was all too brief, but it was certainly memorable.Recruited to the club by former player and leading juniors coach Eddie Pitter, he was a member of three premiership sides in his progression from colts to league over a period of four years. He then returned to his home town, Margaret River, to be part of the local club’s first ever South West Football League flag. A lively onballer with a penchant for booting a goal or two, Duggan originally had no enthusiasm to play league football, and, a Swan Districts supporter, he had even less ambition to represent the Royals.   Duggan was more enamored with cricket, and it was the summer sport that originally brought him to the metropolitan area.  As an eighteen year old he came under the attention of Midland-Guildford Cricket Club and moved to Perth. Rod’s uncle, Tom Duggan, was an acquaintance of Pitter, who was well respected as a judge and mentor of junior footballers, and let Eddie know that “the youngun can play a bit.”    “I was up there, so I reckoned I might as well give it a try,” Rod recalled. Duggan made an immediate impression at the blue and blacks with his ability to win the hard ball, complemented by accurate disposal by both feet, winning the colts fairest and best and was a driving force in their 1975 premiership win. Promoted in 1976, the year he made his league debut, he was again among the grand final action when the reserves won on grand final day.   “I played on Lyndsay McGuiness in my first league game, against West Perth, when the State side was away,” Rod recalled. “He was a tough bugger who didn’t appreciate goals kicked by his immediate opponent. I bagged a couple, and got a few whacks around the ears for my trouble after each one.” East Perth’s defeat of Perth in the 1978 grand final was the pinnacle of Rod Duggan’s career. “The only time I had the ball was when the final siren went,” joked the modest Duggan.  Although time fades the memory, this writer counts a deft Duggan handball to an unmanned Paul Arnold in the first quarter and a goal at the five minute mark of the second among his memories of one of the closest deciders ever. Club officials and supporters were shocked when the twenty two year old Duggan decided to go back home. “The family business, Cowaramup Agencies, needed to be run,” he said. Originating in Cowaramup in 1964 as a farm shop, Cowaramup Agencies has since grown to encompass two rural merchandise outlets, a dairy technical division and a finance broking service. Duggan resumed his football career with Augusta-Margaret River, and in a triumph to rival the East Perth success the previous year, the club won it’s first-ever premiership since joining the SWNFL competition. Enticed back to the Royals the following season, Rod played a further ten games. It was a tragic injury that spelt the end of football for Duggan. During his seventy fifth appearance with Augusta-Margaret River, an onball clash resulted in a brain hemorrhage, and a stay of six weeks in Royal Perth Hospital. “It certainly finished my football career,” he said, “and my mates often comment on whether the brain was saved.” But it didn’t affect his cricket. Duggan retired from the summer sport in 2000, at the age of forty four, after accumulating 9,043 runs over 306 games for the Margaret River Hawks. In 2011 he was recognised by the club with captaincy of the official Allstar side as part of it’s thirty year anniversary celebrations. Rod captain-coached Busselton-Margaret River at Country Week for seven years during  twenty two successive seasons as part of the combined Association side.     These days he enjoys a round of golf, plus travel with partner Debbie. He has a son(Geoff) daughter(Belinda), and five grandchildren. Rod is now involved with Stocker Preston Real Estate, who have offices in both Margaret River and Cowaramup. He enjoys a chat about footy and would welcome a visit from any Royal supporters who might wander down that way.     “The whole of the 1978 side,” he quickly replied when asked about the best he’d played with. As for tough opponents, the names of Lyndsay McGuinness(West Perth), Don Haddow(South Fremantle), Ken Inman(Perth), and Peter Le Cras(East Fremantle) sprung to mind. “I played on Peter throughout colts, reserves, and league,” Rod said. In a relatively short career, Rod Duggan was a member of three premierships in the blue and black plus another one at Margaret River. He is well remembered by East Perth and Royal supporters as a damaging onballer and part of one of the club’s most memorable flags.