Baseball Victoria Hall of Fame Player and Manager: David Went
David Went participated in 21 Claxton Shield series, playing in 6 and managing in 15. He was the Manager of the Australian Baseball team for 10 years. Between 1962 -1968 David represented Victoria as a player in the Claxton Shield and was an integral part of the teams that won three National Claxton Shield Championships. He was selected to the All Australian Team on 4 separate occasions 1962. 1963, 1964 and 1965.
David was Victorian State Assistant coach between 1970-73 and State Head Coach Between 1974 - 1984. During this period Victoria won 4 Australian Championships and was runner up on 6 occasions in the Claxton Shield.
He was appointed as Assistant Manager of the Australian team, in 1971, a position held for 2 years and then as the Manager of the Australian team for the next 10 years. During his time with the National Team, David toured the following countries for International Championships: South Korea 6 times, Japan 6 times, USA 3 times, Canada once, Holland once, Italy once, Philippines once as Australia became established on world scene in international baseball.
David became the first Australian Coach to obtain Level 3 Coaching Accreditation in 1981 and was a foundation member of original National and State Coaching Accreditation & Technical Committees. He was responsible for design and implementing Coaching Accreditation Courses.
David completed a two-year Graduate Diploma of Sports Science with Honours, at Rusden State College, Victoria, comprising Sociology of Sport, Exercise Physiology and Anatomy, Biomechanics of Sport, Skill Acquisition, Sport Psychology, Sports Injuries, Theory and Practise of Coaching, Administration of Sport. All projects completed in this course were of a baseball context.
After graduating, David participated as a guest lecturer for subsequent intakes. He was a participant in the first World Sports Conference conducted in Ottawa Canada and a Member of the National and State Coaching Accreditation and Technical Committee. David was instrumental in introducing a more professional approach into Baseball coaching in Australia.
At the domestic level for the Victorian Baseball Association, David played for 21 seasons between 1951–71 and he was the Head Coach for the Melbourne BC between 1967-84. He played in two A Grade Premiership teams in 1967 and 1969 and led Melbourne to a further A Grade Premiership as the non-playing Manager in 1971.
The Confederation of Australian Sport awarded David Coach of the Year in 1981. The Victorian Baseball Association elected him to Life Membership in 1985. In 2000, David was awarded the Australian Olympic Sports Medal and in 2012 he was awarded the MCC Hans Ebeling award for outstanding service to the Baseball Section. David was Inducted into MCC Baseball Hall of Fame 125th year team as a Playing Manager in 2013.