AustralianFootball.com has him at South Adelaide in 1907:captain of South adelaide, vice captain of Sturt, played in the All Australian carnival in sydney
What he was doing in the years inbetween playing his one game for collingwood and all this
we'll never know
He obviously turned into a very good footballer, but at that stage (1905-06) he would have been a virtual unknown who had played one game for Collingwood as an 18 year old, and he might have just played local/junior level football for the next couple of years. I don't know when he went to Adelaide, but it was probably only in 1907, and it seems he made a name for himself quite quickly there.
Not exactly in the Ron Todd category, but he may still have been one that "got away" from Collingwood!! I find it a very interesting story overall, especially now that I know he tried to return to his old club so many years later.