Norwood Debut: v Port Adelaide (Alberton) 7th April 1979, Finale: v Sturt (Norwood) 23rd August 1986
Sturt (1971 - 1978)
Norwood (1979 - 1986)
Courtesy of Redlegs Musuem
Born in Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea, Bruce Winter attended Norwood High School and made his SANFL League debut in 1971 playing for Sturt.
When Winter joined the Redlegs from Sturt in 1979, he had already played 175 games for the Double Blues. He had been a member of their 1974 Premiership side, and his last game for the club had been against Norwood in the famous 1978 Grand Final cliff-hanger.
Aged 25 in his first season at Norwood, he topped the club's goal-kicking list with 52 goals including nine goals in the second half of a match against South Adelaide. While he had initially been recruited to bolster the Redlegs' forward division, he soon moved to defence when long serving full back Ian Stasinowky retired in 1980. A strong marking footballer, cool under pressure and with good disposal, he instantly became a reliable key defender on Norwood's last line of defence.
Playing in a back pocket in the 1982 and 1984 Grand Finals, Winter was high in the best players in both Norwood wins.
After retiring as a player, Winter turned his hand to coaching, armed with the experience of playing under Jack Oatey, Bob Hammond and Neil Balme. Winter was in charge of the Norwood Reserves from 1988 to 1990, and in 1993 coached Woodville-West Torrens to a League premiership, beating The Redlegs in the final. He then went on to coach the state under-age teams from 2000-200
He is a player Life Member of Norwood, Sturt and the SANFL, and in 2010 was inducted into the SANFL Hall of Fame.