The team that never lets you down

Not only did the legal firm of Nicholas O’Donohue & Co commence in 1925, but it was also the year that Hawthorn, Footscray and North Melbourne joined the Victorian Football League (now known as the AFL).

As we go deeper into the 2025 AFL football season, we recall in our Centenary Year the contributions to the Carlton FC and the Hawthorn FC made by a couple of the firm’s Partners early in the life of the Firm.

Ray Brew played for and coached Carlton from 1923 to 1931. He is on the Champion of Carlton list of Carlton’s greatest 150 players and he was made a Life Member of the Club in 1931. He attended The University of Melbourne and had a scholarship to Newman College where he completed his Bachelor of Laws (LL.B).

Jack Green played for Carlton (86 games) and Hawthorn (40 games) from 1929 to 1936.In his first season at Hawthorn in 1934, he kicked a club record 80 goals, which was not bettered until the legendary full-forward Peter Hudson kicked 125 goals in 1968. Jack graduated with his LL. B from The University of Melbourne in 1929 and then joined the firm.

Both Partners contributed to the development of the firm when in its infancy. Many of their football playing mates became clients. Some of the former footballers purchased hotels and the two partners assisted them with their hotel property freehold and leasehold acquisitions, licensing transfers and provision of finance. The following advertisement appeared in The Vigilante (a newspaper publication for the liquor industry) on Friday, June 23, 1944

The advertisement for “Money to Lend” was the genesis for the more specialised mortgage practice that the firm developed in the mid-1950’s to assist the booming post-war migrants obtain finance for their first homes at a time when the banks would not lend to them.

As with the words of the Carlton FC theme song, Nicholas O’Donohue & Co continues to operate as The Team that Never Lets you Down.

Authored by Frank Lynch, Consultant