The son of John Milne (1855-1921),[1][2][3][4] and Mary Lavinia Milne, née Landorf,[5][6] Herbert Milne was born at Benalla, Victoria on 8 February 1884.
One of his two brothers, Hector Norman Milne (1880-1960), who played two seasons (1899-1900) with Richmond and two seasons with North Melbourne (1902-1903) in the VFA, enlisted in the First AIF (Service no.953) and lost an eye from a bayonet wound whilst serving.[7][8][9][10]
Football
Fitzroy
A follower, Milne had a distinguished career at Fitzroy where he won best and fairest awards in both 1908 and 1910. As part of a strong Fitzroy side he played in four successive Grand Finals, winning back to back flags in 1904 and 1905. He was also a Victorian interstate representative and appeared in the Australasian Championship, which took place at Melbourne in 1908.[11][12]
South Melbourne
Milne crossed to South Melbourne in 1911.
"After an internal political dispute in the summer of [late] 1910, Milne was one of ten Fitzroy players to leave for other clubs." — Donald (2005), p.59.
In 1912, he played in their Grand Final loss to Essendon. He suffered a knee injury in this game and retired as a result.
Military service
Milne enlisted in the First AIF in July 1915,[13] and served overseas with the 14th Field Ambulance.[14] In late 1917 suffered serious wounds when hit by machine gun bullets in his left thigh.[15]
Death
An employee of the Vacuum Oil Company, he died at sea near Colombo, Sri Lanka when returning to Australia on the P & O's S.S. Moldavia,[16] from a business trip to England.[17] He was buried at sea, near Columbo.[18][19]
