Peter Bosustow

Career : 1981 - 1983
Debut: Round 1, 1981 vs Richmond, aged 23 years, 152 days
Carlton Player No. 888
Games : 65
Goals : 146
Last Game: Round 21, 1983 vs North Melbourne, aged 25 years, 296 days
Guernsey No. 4
Height : 183 cm (6 ft. 0 in.)
Weight : 85 kg (13 stone, 5 lbs.)
DOB : 27 October, 1957
Premiership Player 1981, 1982
Club Leading Goalkicker 1981 (59 goals)

In the summer of 1980-81, Peter "The Buzz" Bosustow arrived at Princes Park for pre-season training - and a relatively short, yet unforgettable career was cleared for lift off. Peter was the son of Bob Bosustow, who came from WAFL club, Perth to play 20 games for Carlton in seasons 1955 and '56. So it was that when Bob's 183 cm, 85 kg son began to dominate the WAFL competition in the late 1970's, the Blues had the inside running for his signature. After flying him to their round 9 Sunday game against Essendon in Sydney, the Blues signed him under the Father-Son rule then in place.

Bosustow simply gatecrashed a strong Carlton squad that just two years previously had won the flag, and in 1980 should have made it two in a row. Under new coach David Parkin the Blues were hell-bent on claiming our 13th Premiership in 1981, and had assembled a team that was the envy of every other club in the competition. Parkin's coaching style demanded discipline in all aspects of the game, but to his credit he realised that in The Buzz he had a rare talent. One that flourished under less restraint; that responded to a personal challenge, and that more often than not could wrest the initiative from any rival with just a quarter or two of football magic.

Often unstoppable as a free-running half-forward, Bosustow was a freakish mark, a brilliant ground-level player and a deadly snapshot at goal. The highlight tapes of seasons 1981 to '83 are filled with his exploits, including awards for Mark of the Year and Goal of the Year. Bosustow himself talks about his great mark here.

Legend has it that the Buzz promised Mark Maclure that he would give him a ride in his new car before he took his 1981 screamer. He was a crucial part of our glorious 1981 and '82 Premiership double, and our Leading Goalkicker with 59 goals in 1981. People flocked to see him in action, and he was one of the brightest stars of his era.

In only his second game - during the second quarter of Carlton's Round 2, 1981 match against Hawthorn at Princes Park, Carlton was kicking to the scoreboard end. 'Buzz' marked on the wing, chip-passed to Wayne Johnston and sprinted hard to create the loose man. His opponent - Hawthorn's tough man Robert Dipierdomenico - ran in to block him, but Bosustow crashed through the beefy Hawk with a punishing, legitimate shirtfront, right in front of the old press box. A resounding crack was heard (to the roar of an adoring throng) and Dipper's season was prematurely ended by a broken sternum.

The Round 21 game against North Melbourne would turn out to be a last hurrah for the Buzz. He was reported for striking North Melbourne defender John Law, and subsequently rubbed out for four weeks. This meant that he could only have played again that year if Carlton had made the Grand Final - but it was not to be. In what turned out to be a prophetic statement, a clearly upset Bosustow mentioned after his tribunal appearance that "I am absolutely shattered, when the sentence was delivered I thought my career in Melbourne was all over". He was just 26 years old, and at the peak of his career.

Carlton fans everywhere mourned the premature departure of one of the most popular Blues of all time - one who had added even more lustre to the number 4 guernsey in his 65 games for Carlton, and kicked 146 goals.

Buzz returned to WA and played for Perth in the WANFL along with Richmond's Robert Wiley. In 1984, after just one game back home, a frustrated Bosustow punched a glass door to the dressing room, and badly cut his hand and arm. As a result, he spent the rest of that season on the sidelines, but by 1986 the lure of the big time brought him back to Princes Park. He did all the pre-season training, only to be faced with the realisation that the magic had gone, and another future champion in 'Sticks' Kernahan had taken over the No. 4 guernsey.

Career Highlights

1981 6th Best & Fairest

Links

Articles / Interviews: Fabulous Interview with PB and the Coodabeens

Blueseum: Career Summary for Peter Bosustow | Career Breakdown for Peter Bosustow | Bosustow's Blueseum Image Gallery

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