{{Short description|Australian rules football statistician}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2016}} {{Use Australian English|date=November 2016}} '''Colin Hutchinson''' (born {{circa|1943}})<ref>{{Cite web|title=Alumni - Col Hutchinson, class of 1961|url=https://www.geelonghigh.vic.edu.au/newsletter-article/alumni-col-hutchinson-class-of-1961|access-date=2021-09-30|website=DNA College|language=en-US}}</ref> is a veteran statistician, most notably covering the Victorian/Australian Football League in the sport of Australian rules football. He was the AFL's official historian from the 1990s<ref>[http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/02/19/1077072783487.html?from=storyrhs Sporting Life – Sport – www.theage.com.au]</ref> until around 2005.
A part of the AFL Players Association, Hutchinson provides interesting statistics on football to newspapers and media outlets.
He is the author of several books, including a history of the Geelong Football Club, titled ''Cats' Tales: the Geelong Football Club, 1897–1983''),<ref name=":0">''Cats' tales : the Geelong Football Club, 1897–1983''. Geelong Advertiser, 1984</ref> and ''The AFL Footy Quiz Book''.<ref>{{cite book| author = Col Hutchinson| title = The AFL Footy Quiz Book| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=xl23AAAACAAJ| date = 2002| publisher = Penguin Group Australia| isbn = 978-0-14-300036-5 }}</ref>
Hutchinson attended 1,294 consecutive matches involving the Geelong Football Club between Round 11, 1963, and the 2019 preliminary final, inclusive. That streak came to an end when he and the general public were locked out of the Cats' 2020 Round 1 loss to {{AFL GWS}} in Sydney due to the COVID-19 pandemic.<ref>{{cite web |title=1100 games and counting |date=26 August 2011 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924103010/https://www.smh.com.au/afl/afl-news/1100-games-and-counting-20110826-1jel1.html |archive-date=24 September 2015 |url-status=live |url=http://www.smh.com.au/afl/afl-news/1100-games-and-counting-20110826-1jel1.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/geelong-superfan-col-hutchinson-misses-first-cats-game-since-1963-c-756231|title=Geelong superfan Col Hutchinson misses first Cats game since 1963|publisher=Seven News|date=21 March 2020|accessdate=23 March 2020}}</ref> If away games are excluded, Hutchinson's streak lasted from the early 1958 season to the 2019 preliminary final—62 seasons in all.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Alumni - Col Hutchinson, class of 1961|url=https://www.geelonghigh.vic.edu.au/newsletter-article/alumni-col-hutchinson-class-of-1961|access-date=2021-09-30|website=DNA College|language=en-US}}</ref>
In 1994, Hutchinson was honoured with Geelong Football Club life membership, and he received the Reg Hickey Award for outstanding service to Australian football in 1999.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Alumni - Col Hutchinson, class of 1961|url=https://www.geelonghigh.vic.edu.au/newsletter-article/alumni-col-hutchinson-class-of-1961|access-date=2021-09-30|website=DNA College|language=en-US}}</ref>
Hutchison was the co-recipient the 2021 Jack Titus Medal for his dedication and service towards Australian rules football.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Hutchinson awarded Jack Titus Award|url=https://www.geelongcats.com.au/news/859824/hutchinson-awarded-jack-titus-award|access-date=2021-09-30|website=geelongcats.com.au|language=en}}</ref>
== Bibliography == * ''Cats' Tales: the Geelong Football Club, 1897–1983'' (1984)<ref name=":0" /> * ''The AFL Footy Quiz Book'' (2002)
==References== {{reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Hutchinson, Col}} Category:21st-century statisticians Category:20th-century Australian statisticians Category:21st-century Australian statisticians Category:Australian historians Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Living people
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