[3] Austen tied with South Melbourne's Ron Clegg for the 1949 Brownlow Medal but was not awarded it based on the 'countback' system in place at that time.

Hawthorn Football Club started 1950 in turmoil, Col Austen had sided with outgoing captain-coach Alec Albiston who was angry as he was told by a member of the board that he remain as captain.

The club had appointed Bob McCaskill as coach and he wanted Kevin Curran to be captain.

A huge internal split occurred, the board sided with the new coach and gave Albiston and Austen open clearances.

The 'Col Austen Memorial Trophy' is awarded each year to the winning team in the first Hawthorn vs Richmond match of the regular AFL season.