Received life membership in 2024.
Mark Jillard’s connection to the club runs deep. His father, Footscray team of the century member and Victorian representative, John Jillard, was Ainslie’s senior coach from 1973 to 1975.
Mark has played over 200 games for the club across 4 senior grades, playing over 50 games of 2nd grade and over 100 in third grade. Mark’s longevity in men’s football is truly astonishing. Mark won the third-grade best and fairest in 2005 and then was runner up for the same award a decade later in 2015. This is particularly impressive when you consider Mark spent much of his time playing as a dominant one-on-one defender, locking up the opposition best forward week-in-week out.
Ever-reliable, Mark was pulled into the second-grade team for the 2013 finals campaign where they were eventual premiers. The following season that experience proved invaluable as he was part of a formidable third grade back line that conceded just 42 points in a grand final triumph.