A centre half forward, Snell made his debut in Dick Reynolds's 300th game.
He was a member of Essendon's 1950 premiership team and also played in the side which lost the decider the following season.
He suffered a serious head injury during a pre-season game before the 1951 season.
[2][3] Although doctors feared that he would never play football again, Snell returned to play the last eight games of the 1951 VFL season,[4] including Essendon's loss to Geelong in the 1951 VFL Grand Final.
He played a further eight games in 1952 before retiring from the VFL and going to coach the Stawell Football Club in 1953.