[1] His early years with Footscray were nonetheless patchy, and he lost his place in the senior side after a slump in 1974 and again in 1976 – though he returned to play well in the last round draw with Carlton and in his only final against Geelong a week later.
On 1 July 1978 Dunstan and Kelvin Templeton kicked against St Kilda a record VFL/AFL total for two players in one team of 22 goals 12 behinds (144 points),[2] narrowly beating the total of Doug Strang and Jack Titus for Richmond against North Melbourne on 9 May 1931.
However, he would miss the whole season after breaking his arm in a practice game, and then suffered another injury at training while on the comeback trail.
On a forgettable day for the club, with the Kangaroos going down by 137 points, Dunstan was among the few North players to put in a respectable performance, gathering 20 disposals and kicking one goal.
At the end of 1984 Ian Dunstan retired from the VFL and played briefly with Werribee in the Victorian Football Association.