Round 6, 1984 - West Perth FC 15.15 (105) drew South Fremantle FC 16.9 (105), Leederville Oval

Mike B. (left) and Kieran J., West Perth cheer squad 1984-86 founders, 25 years on, Exchange Hotel, Kalgoorlie, 14 July 2011

Leederville Oval viewed from northern end goals, 6/7/2011

The author became aware, early in the 1984 WAFL regular season, that the earlier famed WPFC cheer squad, which had congregated behind the northern end goals at Leederville Oval for many years, had quit completely at the end of 1983. This cheer squad was interesting as, unlike nearly every other cheer squad in Australian Rules’ history in Victoria, South Australia, and Western Australia, it was dominated by middle-aged females and young children. The legendary leader of this group was a woman known as “Fat Pam”. The leading women used to stand upright on the last row of wooden benches behind the northern goals thus placing considerable strain upon the said benches. Their cheer squad was large, committed, and dedicated; it had a huge collection of flags and floggers. However, with this cheer squad now disbanded by early in the 1984 season, the author sensed a gap and an opportunity. As far as the author was aware, in May 1984, Fat Pam’s group continued to make the banners that the players ran through at the start of each game (they may still make these banners today), and his group never attempted to get involved in this activity, mostly out of respect for Fat Pam’s group which was there long before it. The northern end at Leederville Oval in 1984 was strangely quiet, empty, and barren, now devoid of West Perth flags and floggers on home game days. The author felt that the WPFC team would be inspired by a vocal group of home supporters, with a colourful red-and-blue visual presence, at the northern end of Leederville. A Melbourne Knights’ soccer fan puts forward her view (below) that her team has been inspired and encouraged on occasion by the vociferous, noisy, and colourful support of the club’s hooligan firm Melbourne Croatia Fans or MCF:

“From what I can gather, the MCF is largely made up of young men who are passionate about their club, its heritage and its importance to the Croatian community. They are loyally devoted to their team and will often travel great distances in order to show their support. The songs, chants and banners have (according to the players) been known to lift our team in crucial moments during the match” [personal e-mail communication with the first-mentioned author, 23 August 2010].

Laurie James, Leederville Oval, looking south towards city

The author was inspired to set up a new unofficial cheer squad to replace Fat Pam’s group at the northern end goals at home matches and to travel to select away games. The cheer squad was started by the author (aged fifteen years) and his high-school friend Mike B. (aged sixteen years). The author is fairly sure that his group already had two large red-and-blue homemade flags on day one (West Perth versus South Fremantle, Leederville Oval, 5 May 1984). His group would add significantly to the two flags over the next two years ending up with around fifteen flags at one point or approximately one flag per core member. On this first day of the new cheer squad Mike B. and the author both wore their long-sleeved West Perth replica playing jerseys. Although these were not the height of fashion even in the mid-1980s the author and his friend were very proud to show their club loyalty. Contemporaneous newspaper reports confirm that the match, which was day one for the cheer squad, was the thrilling draw against South Fremantle on 5 May 1984 also described by Atkinson (2008, p. 201) in his It’s a Grand Old Flag. Atkinson (2008, p. 201) recounts that the slender Aboriginal forward flanker Ron Davis kicked two goals out of three for WPFC in the last five minutes to draw the game with only fifteen seconds remaining. The final score was: West Perth 15.15 (105) drew South Fremantle 16.9 (105) (Atkinson, 2008, p. 334) and the official attendance was 7,790. The author certainly does remember a joyous mood that day commensurate with an exciting come-from-behind draw. It was the perfect on-field start to begin the cheer squad era. The author also remembers that the weather was fine but cold. It was the first drawn match in the WAFL since 20 April 1974. It is remarkable that the games the author classifies now as the first and last games for the cheer squad were both draws, versus South Fremantle at Leederville Oval on 5 May 1984 and versus Perth at Lathlain Park on 29 March 1986.

Kieran J. (centre), Pave Jusup (right), Melbourne Knights SC

If the author’s memory serves him correctly two fourteen-year-olds, Courtney and his friend Rohan H., both joined the group on the first day. Both were to form part of the core for the next two years with Courtney arguably filling a role as deputy leader, along a second rank, with his suburban junior football friend Mark “Thommo” Thompson (aged fourteen years) who may also have joined the group on that first day. In the group tiny sub-gangs emerged following the same pattern, but with much smaller numbers, as Portsmouth’s 6.57 Crew or the Peruvian barras bravas of Lima (Panfichi and Thieroldt, 2002). The sub-gangs operated along the lines of friendships formed prior to joining the group and based on suburbs of residence. The sub-gangs had two or three people each, and each sub-gang had a particular relationship with the unofficial joint-leaders, Mike B. and the author, and with the group as a whole. Courtney, Rohan, and Thommo (the “Carine group”) were a sub-gang, as were the “Balga group” of P.A. and Dave S. (name changed) (joined later, in 1985, by Robbie, who also knew Thommo and hence was a key link between the sub-gangs). People from the same districts were viewed as sub-gangs since they would habitually take the same buses or trains to and from games together. It was soon possible to see a shaky organizational chart emerge of the core since the two blonds, Courtney and Mike B., had always had a strong relationship, while the author naturally related well with the red-haired Thommo.

LO grandstand, only red-and-blue is Medibank Private sign

Although the group, sadly, did not grow much over its two-year life, the core fifteen members were loyal and dedicated, and, on good days of fine weather and interesting opponents, large numbers of hangers-on and drifters of various ages used to join them. This was especially so at away games where WPFC fans had no definite habitual place to sit and were wary of the home team supporters. WPFC fans, especially at away games, would tend to look for and congregate with groups of people wearing the club colours and looking like an authentic and believable gang of supporters. This is why the club colours were so important and why, with the exceptions of Mike B. (replica playing jersey excluded), Courtney, and Rohan, the group did not follow the designer dressing style of the 1980s English soccer “casuals”.

LO: Tin shed and Technical School at rear, northern end

Regardless of his background, everyone in the group was treated and valued equally, and the author believes that each member experienced and enjoyed the camaraderie of the group. Without these positive factors each individual in the fifteen-member core would not have stuck with the group for two full years when there were no legal, economic or moral ties to bind anyone to the group. People had to enjoy sitting with the group or the group would lose them. Everyone made the effort to create a warm and cheerful atmosphere, to welcome newcomers, and to encourage each other amidst the usual teasing and insults that readers might expect from the male group situation. Everyone certainly was a dedicated West Perth supporter and the core members regarded the group as important in their lives and vital in their match-day experiences of fandom. No-one in the group was like those English soccer hooligans who, allegedly, are not interested in the actual game or in the club. Leaders felt responsible for providing the group with a minimum of organization, resolving the few disagreements, and making sure that teasing and insults were in a good spirit (especially when young members such as eight-year-old Michael aka “Half” were on the receiving end). It would be impossible to argue that continuing membership in the group was something not freely chosen by the core members for that two-year period. Pave Jusup (aged 22), a leader and founding member of the MCF firm at Melbourne Knights, states, consistent with the “loose ties” theory, that the only things MCF members have in common is: (a) attending the games; (b) drugs and alcohol; and (c) Croatian heritage (group interview with author, 11 January 2011). However, he also suggests that the MCF is more organized than the firm at fellow Melbourne-based Croatian club, St Alban’s (at date of interview a Victorian Premier League (VPL) club), in that the MCF is organized sufficiently to arrange bus trips interstate. In Pave’s words (group interview, 11 January 2011): “The supporters of St Alban’s are not like us but they [also] do silly stuff. They are not organized like us. We are a proper group. They are just people that turn up at games and sing and drink a lot. We organize time at the pub and away trips”. The author’s WPFC group lacked the obvious ethnic heritage in common that the MCF has and drugs and alcohol were not part of its routine. However, it was definitely, in Pave’s words a “proper group” just like the MCF is today. It was a “group-for-itself” not just a “group-in-itself”. The theoretical distinction between “group-for-itself” and “group-in-itself” appears to characterize the difference between the MCF and the St Alban’s hardcore support [by Kieran James, 8 January 2012].

Round 6, 1984 – West Perth v South Fremantle, Leederville Oval

Likely line-ups

(Source: The West Australian, Saturday, 5 May, 1984, p. 193)

West Perth FC

Backs: Dayman, Comerford, O’Brien

Half-backs: Hendriks, Mugavin, Morgan

Centres: Warwick, Perrin, Mifka

Half-forwards: Simms, Lockman, Gastevich

Forwards: Bell, Alderton, Bogunovich

Ruck: Nelson, Menaglio, Fong

Interchange from: Kickett, Michalczyk, Davis, D Falconer

South Fremantle FC

Backs: Barrett, Hayes, G Carter

Half-backs: Mosconi, Henworth, Cornell

Centres: Keyner, Hardie, Grljusich

Half-forwards: Michael, Dorotich, Vigona

Forwards: Matera, Mount, N Carter

Ruck: Edwards, Vasoli, Hart

Interchange from: Rawlinson, Gillica, Winmar, Amoroso

Match results - Saturday, 5 May, 1984, Leederville Oval

West Perth FC 3.5 6.811.15 15.15 (105) drew South Fremantle FC 3.4 8.7 9.7 16.7 (105)

Scorers: WP: Kickett 4.1, Davis 3.0, Gastevich 2.1, Simms 1.4, Lockman, Menaglio, Nelson 1.1, Fong, Perrin 1.0, Mifka 0.3, Michalczyk 0.1, Warwick 0.1, Forced 0.1.

SF: Hart 4.0, Winmar 3.1, Hardie, Matera 2.1, Dorotich 2.0, Edwards 1.3, Hayes 1.1, Vasoli 1.0, N Carter 0.1, Forced 0.1.
Official attendance: 7,790 (from WAFL Online)

Best-on-ground rankings: B Perrin (WP) 1, W Mosconi (SF) 2, G Michalczyk (WP) 3.

Team rankings:

WP: B Perrin 1, G Michalczyk 2, D Warwick 3, J Gastevich 4, P Mifka 5, D Kickett 6.

SF: W Mosconi 1, D Hart 2, B Hardie 3, W Matera 4, R Barrett 5, P Vasoli 6.

B Perrin: “Gave a brilliant ruck-roving performance. Had 18 kicks, took six marks and made nine handpasses”.

W Mosconi: “Improved as the game progressed. Started on the half-back line, but played mainly on the ball and on a wing”.

G Michalczyk: “In his first league match for five weeks, dominated the centre”.

Source: The West Australian, Monday, 7 May, 1984, p. 81.

Match analysis

Quotes from DAVID MARSH:

“One of the first decisions made by Dennis Cometti after his appointment as West Perth’s coach before the 1982 season was to promote West Australian junior players.

“This is paying dividends, as evident when five first-year men played leading roles in helping West Perth to rise from almost certain defeat.

(The five first-year players were: Derek Kickett from Tammin; John Morgan from Merredin; local juniors Ron Davis and Paul Mifka; and Brendon Bell from Karratha.)

Ron Davis “played superbly to kick the last two goals of the game from difficult angles in a forward pocket”.

Brian Perrin is “one of the few Victorian players to excel in WA football in recent years".

“The former Footscray player [Perrin] gave a brilliant ruck-roving performance to continually set up attacking moves through sheer hard work.

“Stephen Michael [SF] played steadily without having a major influence on the game”.

Source: David Marsh (1984), “Cometti’s plan is paying off”, The West Australian, Monday, 7 May, p. 80 [archival research by Kieran James].