Before he came to Essendon, Hanley played his football at South Ballarat.
A premiership player in both 1911 and 1912, he remained with Essendon until the conclusion of the 1914 season when he was suspended for eight matches in the penultimate game of the year.
He did not return the following season and instead joined the army with whom he served overseas.
Hanley was involved in a controversial incident in 1912 when he alleged that he had been deliberately impeded by a boundary umpire.
His allegation was that when he was on the boundary line competing against a Collingwood player for the ball, the umpire grasped him by the hand, thus preventing him from taking part in the contest.