W. 'Bill' Gorman

Melbourne Rules - Challenge Cup Competition
DOB: 1848
DOD: 30 August 1877*
Original Carlton Football Club player.
Committee Member: 1866 (Tom or W. Gorman?)
Career: 1864 - 1871

The Gorman family moved from Paramatta NSW to Hotham (North Melbourne) around 1860.
Older brother Tom began work with the Victorian Railways to supplement the family income in 1862.
Two years later in March 1864 both Bill and Tom were playing cricket for Alma Cricket Club, later West Melbourne. (westerndistrictfamiles.com)
Pennings Vol 5 has W. Gorman playing football with Royal Park before joining Carlton. Vol 5 also shows Billy played some games with Melbourne in 1866 and 1869

Pioneer player in 1864.

W. "Bill" Gorman, a forward, and his brother Tom Gorman were both original members of the first Carlton side to play in 1864.

1865 (who the committee here feel it is their duty to state, has played like a little brick throughout the entire season) scored a goal against Royal Park.
(The Herald. June 14 1919)

1866 Carlton played 4 games for the Challenge Cup during the season, and scored only 3 goals, 2 by W.Gorman and 1 by James Byrne

1867 Carlton fielded it's strongest team against Melbourne June 22 1867.
W.Gorman and Tom McCarthy scored the two goals to give Carlton it's first ever victory over the Melbourne Football Club.

1868 Gorman, W."Bill" or brother Tom?
Outstanding player for Carlton during the season.

(The Carlton Story, H.Buggy and H. Bell p6, 13,14,17)

.*1877 August 30
Died at his residence 206 LaTrobe Street East, Melbourne aged 30.
May have been by his own hand.
William was a musician with the Theatre Royal orchestra.
Husband or partner of Ada Jane Burgess a ballet dancer. She later married (in 1877) Tom Kirkham a police officer who was to be sent to North East Victoria to help with hunt for the Kelly Gang. (RofAd/Argus Sept 01 p1)

This death information is at odds with the poem published in 1879. May have been published that year but written earlier? We do know brother Tom Gorman was the station-master at Euroa prior to his transfer to Hamilton.
Perhaps the poem is about Tom and not William Gorman.

Relation of H. W. Gorman and A. Gorman ?

EUROA VS SEYMOUR

July 25 1879 By J. Noble
Come all ye jolly footballers,
Some news I have in store.
'Tis of a famous football match
'Tween Seymour and Euroa.

The Seymour team to Euroa came,
They were a wiry-looking lot,
They felt quite sure they would win the game,
But they got it rather hot.

When I arrived upon the ground
The umpire called out "play,
A Seymour man with a terrible bound
Then carried the ball away.

But Gorman, once of Carlton fame,
Did follow in his track,
He knows well how to play the game,
And threw Seymour on his back.

Which Gorman does it refer to? In 1879 Tom Gorman was in Hamilton, so it could be about his brother Bill.
This poem was about the first football match to be played in Euroa.
The poetry continues for another 12 verses.
It was printed in the Euroa Advertiser 2 August 1902 p3

Broken Memories

https://westerndistrictfamilies.com/2020/02/12/broken-memories-hamilton-old-cemetery-part-3/
This excellent article contains details about the Gorman family, and their struggles after the deaths of Tom and three of his children.