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Malcolm L. "Mal" Pascoe (born 31 March 1933) is a former Australian rules footballer and coach.
He played 94 senior Victorian Football League (VFL) games for the Essendon Football Club from 1953 to 1958, and played 177 senior Tasmanian Australian National Football League (TANFL) games for the Hobart Football Club from 1959 to 1966.
He was captain-coach of Hobart from 1959 to 1965, and non-playing coach of Hobart from 1978 to 1979.
Early career at Essendon
Recruited at 15 from his junior team, the Essendon Bombers, Pascoe steadily made his way through the Essendon thirds (under-19s) and seconds (reserves) from 1949 until he played his first match for the Essendon senior team in 1953.
He starred in the highly talented 1952 Essendon seconds premiership team that beat Collingwood seconds 7.14 (56) to 4.5 (29). All but one, Allan Taylor, of the premiership team's 20 players had either already played for the Essendon firsts or would go on to do so in the future; the team was:
| Essendon | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Backs | Alan Thaw | Jack Knowles | Doug Bigelow |
| H/Backs | Brian Paine | John Ramsay | Bob Taylor |
| Centre Line | Keith McIntosh | Hugh Morris | Alby Law |
| H/Forwards | Greg Sewell | Bill Snell | Ray Martini |
| Forwards | Brian Gilmore | Ken Reed | Stan Booth |
| Rucks/Rover | Allan Hird (c/c) | Geoff Leek | Allan Taylor |
| Reserves | Mal Pascoe | Ian Monks |
Excluding the senior games that some had already played (or would go on to play) with other VFL clubs, the members of the Essendon 1952 seconds premiership team played an aggregate total of 1072 senior games for Essendon firsts.
Senior career at Essendon
He played mainly as a ruck-rover resting on the backline, sharing the duties with Hugh Mitchell. He was a strong overhead mark, a fearless defender, andwidely acknowledged as one of the best drop kicks in the VFL.
He made his senior debut in Round 9 of the 1953 season (20 June 1953), playing against Hawthorn, at Hawthorns's home ground, Glenferrie Oval. Essendon won 12.15 (87) to Hawthorn’s 9.10 (64).
His senior record with Essendon is impressive:
- 1953: 9 games (including losing First Semi-Final team).
- 1954: 17 games.
- 1955: 17 games, 27 goals (including losing First Semi-Final team).
- 1956: 17 games, 13 goals (plus 1 night game).
- 1957: 19 games, 4 goals (including losing Grand Final team) (plus 1 night game, 3 goals)
- 1958: 18 games, 18 goals (plus 2 night games, 5 goals).
After Essendon
Pascoe left Essendon at the end of 1958, and was appointed coach of Hobart Football Club in the Tasmanian Australian National Football League (TANFL) in 1959.
The extent of Essendon's loss is reflected in the fact that, in his first year in Tasmania:
- His team won the TANFL premiership, with Pascoe as captain-coach, beating New Norfolk 9.14 (68) to 2.9 (27).
- His premiership team won the Tasmanian State Grand Final, with Pascoe as captain-coach, beating North Western Football Union (NWFU) premiers Burnie 14.11 (95) to 9.14 (68).
- He played interstate football for Tasmania.
- He was the leading goal-kicker in the TFL (75 goals).
- He was voted the league's best and fairest for 1959 and was awarded the William Leitch Medal.
He coached Hobart from 1959 to 1965 as a captain-coach; and, later, as a non-paying coach from 1978 to 1979. The team, under his coaching, won the TANFL premierships in 1959, 1960, and 1963.
He played for Hobart from 1959 to 1966, having relinquished the coaching position to John Watts in 1966.
In all, he played 177 senior games for Hobart Football Club, starring in his last game, Hobart's 1966 Grand Final one-point win over Glenorchy 10.14 (74) to 11.7 (73).
He unsuccessfully applied for Essendon's vacant senior coaching position in 1971; the position was awarded to John Birt.
In 2002, he was chosen as first ruck in Hobart's official "Best Team (1947 to 2002)".