Haydn Bunton, Jr.

Haydn Bunton Junior (born April 5, 1937 in Melbourne) was a famous player and coach of Australian rules football. He became the youngest ever coach in a major league of Australian rules, when he was appointed captain-coach of Norwood Football Club in 1957. Bunton was regarded as a tough and skilful player and was a very successful coach in both the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL) and South Australian National Football League (SANFL). (His father, Haydn Bunton Senior, is regarded by some observers as the finest ever player of Australian rules and won three Brownlow Medals in the VFL and three Sandover Medals in the WANFL.)

The younger Bunton was inducted into the coaches section of the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 1996, as well as the Western Australian Institute of Sport Hall of Champions in 2003 and was made an inaugural member of the WA Football Hall of Fame in 2004.

He was named an All-Australian player at the age of 19, in 1956, while at Norwood in the SANFL. Bunton enjoyed another remarkable year in 1961, when he was recruited by Swan Districts in the WANFL as captain-coach, captained Western Australia to a (then) rare win at the Australian championships, and oversaw Swan Districts' first ever premiership, the first of three consecutive premierships for the club. The following year Bunton won the Sandover Medal, for the league's "fairest and best", completing a unique father-son achievement.

After retiring as a player, Bunton coached Subiaco (WANFL) from 1968 to 1972; South Adelaide (SANFL) from 1975-1982; returned to Subiaco in 1984-89, including WAFL premierships in 1986 and 1988; and Sturt (SANFL) in 1992-1994.