First semi-final, 1986 - Perth Demons 24.18 (162) d Claremont Tigers 13.11 (89), Subiaco Oval.

Malcolm Gregory (Mal) Brown - a great motivator of men, he was expert at instilling mental and physical toughness into players and causing fringe players to turn into champions because he believed in them. Sadly his great effort in bringing Perth Demons to third in the WAFL in 1986 is largely forgotten today. He is a loveable larrikin and never politically correct - he is a reminder of a simpler time.

First semi-final, 30 August 1986 – Perth v Claremont, Subiaco Oval

Perth vs. Swan Districts, Lathlain Park, 2 July 2011.

Perth Demons have just won its first game of the season at home at Lathlain Park in the 2013 season as I write this. Perth supporters remain somewhat cynical and jaded at this time of year but never without hope. Since the dual premierships of 1976-77, Perth has only played three times in finals – 1986, 1991, and 1997 – with identical results each time. In both 1986 and 1997 a first semi-final win was followed by a preliminary final loss. In 1991 an elimination final win was followed by a first semi-final loss.

If we look at the 1986 season, most people were not at all surprised by the results of the finals series because they followed the league ladder at the end of the home-and-away rounds – Subiaco first, East Fremantle second, then a long way further back Perth and then a long way further back again Claremont. Although (despite the late Geoff Christian’s optimism about Perth’s prospects in his match report after the first semi-final), dedicated WAFL fans that year were convinced that the grand finalists would be Subiaco and East Fremantle because those two teams were a class above all their competitors as win-loss records of 17-4 (S) and 16-5 (EF) indicate. Perth was a long way back with 12-8-1. However, credit where credit is due. Perth had finished last or second-last in each season from 1981-84. Legendary WAFL coach one Malcolm Gregory "Mal" Brown took over as coach for the 1985 season and by season’s end obvious improvements were being noted by discerning critics with the club winning its last two home-and-away games. Mal Brown’s coaching was responsible for developing physical and mental toughness, self-confidence, and teamwork in his charges at Perth as he had done earlier with South Fremantle (1980 premiers and 1979 and 1981 runners-up). Perth drew against 1985 finalists West Perth on the first day of the 1986 season and people were forced to recognize that Perth had rapidly closed the gap between a fourth-placed team such as West Perth and itself. Mal Brown had the ability to turn ordinary fringe players into stars after he had injected them with healthy doses of self-belief. Examples include three former West Perth players John Gavranich in the ruck, Mick Rea at full-forward, and Ray Holden at full-back. Another ex-West Perth player, the late Chris Stasinowsky was also a fine contributor for Perth in 1985-86. (Really it's hard at times to think of Perth and West Perth as separate clubs given the two-way traffic of players between them in the 1970s and 1980s. To use an example from PFC's geographic territory the volume of traffic between the clubs rivaled Albany Highway outside Carousel during shopping hours.) Rea was a revelation, topping the goal kicking list in 1986 with 80 majors and beating the VFL/AFL standard defenders of other high-performing clubs. Rea proved himself again on first semi-final day 1986 when he kicked 6.3 and defeated Claremont’s John Hutton. 

For nearly 40 years Perth has continually had an absorbing but frustrating game-plan of kicking the ball sideways and backwards and generally over-finessing and lairising (to use a somewhat dated word favoured by my late grandfather who although living in PFC territory for his last 50 years never shifted his allegiance from the black-and-whites). This game-plan only worked in years such as 1976-77 and 1986 when Perth had midfielders talented enough to play this type of game. In 1986 these talented midfielders at Perth included such players as Robert Wiley (back from Richmond where he played 95 games from 1979-83), Allan Montgomery (back from Carlton where he played 33 games from 1982-85), Chris Stasinowsky (RIP), Joe Santostefano, Kim Fancote, Mark Watson, Adrian Barich, and Bryan Cousins. This day Perth’s attack was far too good for Claremont with the team kicking 24.18 including 6.3 from Mick Rea, 4.2 from Chris Stasinowsky, 3.2 from Earl Spalding, and 3.1 from Robbie Wiley. With Rea, Whittington, Santostefano, and Stasinowsky all coming back into the team for this match, Perth was at full strength and playing with self-confidence. It was able to put its losses in the last two qualifying games behind it. In my opinion, Santostefano and Stasinowsky were two of the best players of this era never to play VFL/AFL. Allan Montgomery, like Alan Johnson a decade before him, was a player who never drew attention to himself on or off-field but was remarkably talented and consistent and would have been one of the first players picked in any side. He was also one of the best players this day. Furthermore, in the past 40 years whenever Perth has been successful it has had a fast-leading and strong-marking full-forward, namely Murray Couper in 1976-77 and Mick Rea in 1986 (with the future Melbourne and Carlton player Earl Spalding also offering another tall key-position player option in 1986). Without such a full-forward, Perth's style of play means its players get bogged down around the half-forward line and hang on to the ball while running around in circles because they are afraid of losing possession.

The old Victoria Park station (prior to renovations).

If we look at the two named teams, Perth had a group of around ten very strong players with the rest playing above themselves due to Mal Brown’s motivational skills. The Claremont team had more players who either had already or would go on to play VFL/AFL including 17-year-old Chris Lewis in his third WAFL league game and a young Guy McKenna. Other VFL/AFL players included Derek Kickett (strangely named at full-forward where he played poorly), Steve Malaxos, Michael and David O’Connell, Michael Mitchell, Geoff Miles, John Hutton, and Mark Hepburn. By all accounts Perth played extremely well to finish the season with a 12-8-1 win-loss-draw record and to win the first semi-final by such a convincing margin. This was Mal Brown’s last great coaching achievement although it has gone largely unheralded because he failed to bring Perth to a premiership and because by 1987 many football supporters were no longer following the WAFL, having fallen head over heels in love with their new blue-and-gold winged girlfriend called West Coast Eagles FC. Of Perth’s 1986 team an aging but still excellent Robert Wiley was picked up by West Coast along with Adrian Barich. The full-text of the match report by the late Geoff Christian from the following Monday’s West Australian (reproduced below) makes excellent reading but, as mentioned, I think he allowed himself a momentary lapse from his usual restrained and logical analysis when he wrote that Perth would prove a dangerous challenger for Subiaco and East Fremantle. East Fremantle had defeated Perth (24.16 to 7.10) in Round 20 so it is doubtful that East Fremantle was feeling excessively worried about the prospect of meeting Perth.

Overall, Perth played brilliantly this game while Claremont played poorly. Mal Brown and the players deserve the utmost credit for their performances this 1986 season. The team was not as strong as the 1976-77 teams and it was faced with much stronger opposition in the form of Subiaco and East Fremantle sides which were both at VFL/AFL standard and certainly among the best that have ever played in the WAFL. If these two teams had not been so strong the 1986 Perth team might conceivably have made a grand final if not won a premiership. Perth fans had to wait until the 1997 season before the club again reached a preliminary final and by this time the WAFL was nearly unrecognizable to those people whom had known its former glory days.

The old Lathlain station (since demolished) looking south.

FOOTNOTE: By the way, I hope Perth Demons can continue to succeed on the field this 2013 season and bring some sunshine and joy back to the south-eastern suburbs. It has been great to see the Demons' singlets (white with club shield) and polo shirts again being worn with pride on the Armadale train line and in places like Gosnells Town Centre, places the mining boom seems to have overlooked and where every dollar is just about as hard to get as it has always been [by Jack Frost, 17 March 2013, footnote added 28 June 2013].       

Likely line-ups:

(Source: The West Australian, Saturday, 30 August 1986, p. 194)

Perth Demons FC

Backs: Cousins, Holden, Bogaards

Half-backs: Yorgey, Montgomery, Whittington

Centres: Santostefano, Wiley, Barich

Half-forwards: Garbin, Spalding, Ryder

Forwards: Stasinowsky, Rea, Lucas

Ruck: Gavranich, Fancote, Watson

Interchange (from): Newman, C Smyth, Grljusich, McCracken

In; Rea, Whittington, Santostefano, Stasinowsky

Out: Mount (thigh), Zaikos, Moir

Claremont Tigers FC

Backs: L Kickett, Hutton, McKenna

Half-backs: M O’Connell, Miles, Morton

Centres: Panizza, Malaxos, Povey

Half-forwards: Lewis, D O’Connell, Thorne

Forwards: Cook, D Kickett, Dintinosante

Ruck: Hepburn, Goulding, Mitchell

Interchange (from): Shepherd, Hann, Mumme, Tait

In: Malaxos, Mitchell, Goulding, Hutton

Out: Court

Match results – Saturday 30 August, 1986, Subiaco Oval

Perth FC 7.3 13.7 19.12 24.18 (162) d Claremont 3.2 7.4 10.7 13.11 (89)

Scorers: P: Rea 6.3, Stasinowsky 4.2, Spalding 3.2, Wiley 3.1, Ryder 2.5, Lucas 2.0, Barich 1.0, Bogaards 1.0, Fancote 1.0, Yorgey 1.0, Watson 0.2, Newman 0.1, Whittington 0.1.

C: Hutton 3.1, Morton 2.0, Panizza 2.0, Goulding 1.1, Hepburn 1.1, Lewis 1.1, Malaxos 1.1, Dintinosante 1.0, D Kickett 1.0, Thorne 0.4, Shepherd 0.1, Forced 0.1.

Weather: Fine, moderate south-westerly winds.

(Source: The West Australian, Monday, 1 September 1986, p. 81)

Attendance: 21,037 (from WAFL Online)

Free-kicks: P: 10, 4, 2, 2 – 18.

C: 10, 5, 6, 6 – 27.

Team rankings: GEOFF CHRISTIAN:

P: A Montgomery 1, I Newman 2, B Yorgey 3, R Wiley 4, C Smyth 5, J Lucas 6.

C: C Lewis 1, G Miles 2, M Hepburn 3, J Hutton 4, C Shepherd 5, M O’Connell 6.

KEN CASELLAS:

P: B Yorgey 1, R Wiley 2, J Gavranich 3, A Montgomery 4, M Rea 5, B Cousins 6.

C: C Lewis 1, M O’Connell 2, G Miles 3, M Hepburn 4, C Shepherd 5, J Hutton 6.

GARY STOCKS:

P: B Yorgey 1, A Montgomery 2, R Wiley 3, A Barich 4, I Newman 5, J Gavranich 6.

C: C Lewis 1, G Miles 2, M Hepburn 3, C Shepherd 4, M O’Connell 5, B Cook 6.

DAVID MARSH:

P: B Yorgey 1, A Montgomery 2, I Newman 3, J Gavranich 4, R Wiley 5, M Rea 6.

C: C Lewis 1, M O’Connell 2, G Miles 3, S Goulding 4, C Shepherd 5, D O’Connell 6.

(Source: The West Australian, Monday, 1 September 1986, p. 81)

Complete match report (full text):

By the late GEOFF CHRISTIAN:

“Perth played well enough for long enough against a sub-standard Claremont in the first semi-final on Saturday to sound a genuine warning to the losers of the Subiaco-East Fremantle second semi-final at Subiaco Oval next Saturday.

“Perth emerged from this game in top form, with no serious injury problems and with the prospect of having key defender Stephen Mount and rover Stephen Lally available on Saturday week.

“There was no need to tell Perth yesterday that they will not have things as easy against either Subiaco or East Fremantle as they did on Saturday, when they controlled the action from the start with a minimum of interference.

“But Perth could not have expected to do more in a dress-rehearsal for the preliminary final than to kick 24.18 – their second-highest score in final-round football – and win by 73 points in what was the most one-sided first semi-final since 1959.

“That was when Subiaco beat Perth by 129 points at the start of a final-round trip that ended in a grand-final clash with East Perth.

“Perth now plan to travel the same route in 1986 – win the preliminary final and qualify for their first grand final appearance since 1978 when they lost to East Perth.

“Saturday’s semi-final was a no-contest; an exercise which left all Claremont fans with amnesia.

“But Perth fans enjoyed the after-glow of victory and they had plenty to remember about a match in which their team snapped back into form with a minimum of fuss and a maximum of attacking efficiency.

“These who believed the 1986 premiership battle was a two-way contest between Subiaco and East Fremantle were left pondering whether the Demons have the skill to bridge the big gap between the first semi-final and the grand final.

“Subiaco probably thought a little deeper and longer than East Fremantle because it was only three weeks ago that Perth beat Subiaco 21.10 to 11.18 at Subiaco Oval.

“East Fremantle would not have ignored the fact that Perth handled a meek challenge from Claremont nearly as easily as did the Sharks at Claremont Oval a week earlier, when they won 27.14 to 13.11.

“Perth swept back into form after two weeks on the outer on a healthy winning mixture of dominant play on the ball, excellent forward work and strong defensive play against a Claremont side that was out-of-business by half-time.

“Perth will have to create a similar set of circumstances to advance further in this year’s final round, but the following features of their football were excellent signs:

-          The combined ruck work of Ian Newman, who was superb in the first half, and John Gavranich, who turned on his best 45 minutes of football for the year in the second.

-          The roving of [Robert] Wiley, who absorbed a heavy head-shot late in the second term and gave a second-half display that was testimony to his skill and courage. The support from Mark Watson and Kim Fancote was of the standard required to win in up-tempo football.

-          The capacity of forwards Mick Rea (6.3) and Chris Stasinowsky [RIP] (4.2) to give telling comeback performances that destroyed the stability of the Claremont defence by quarter-time.

-          The versatility of Brett Yorgey, who slipped neatly into the centre in the first quarter to help lift the efficiency of Perth in a performance that guaranteed him a place in the best-player list.

-          The effectiveness of Craig Smyth (opposed by Steve Malaxos) and Jack Lucas (v Michael Mitchell) in their personal duels with two of Claremont’s most capable attacking players.

-          The experience and skill of key defender Allan Montgomery, which went on display in telling fashion throughout. He set a standard that was quickly followed, notably by Mick Garbin, who had a significant win over Derek Kickett.

-          The second-half form of wingman Adrian Barich and centre-half-forward Earl Spalding, both of whom will be required to play that well (and for a little longer) in the [preliminary] final”.

(Source: Geoff Christian (1986), “Devastating Demons deliver warning”, The West Australian, Monday, 1 September 1986, p. 84) [archival research by Jack Frost].

Round 3, 1979 - Swan Districts FC 11.12 (78) d Perth FC 11.8 (74), Lathlain Park

Perth v Swan Districts @ Lathlain Park, 32 years on, last quarter in the can bar, 2/7/2011. The famous members' and public stand is at left. All or most of the guys pictured here are probably that generation which began to support Perth during its glory years of the mid-1970s. When / if Perth win aother premiership the celebrations will be unbelievable. If you see yourself in this picture please post a comment below so we can acknowledge you!

P v SD, last quarter, 2/7/2011, viewed from can bar

Without a doubt Swan Districts was the club of the early-1980s in the WAFL, i.e. the club had and has the privileged position of being the Golden Club of the Golden Era. (However, Swan Districts of 1982-83 versus Perth of 1976-77 would have been a brilliant contest.) After being easy-beats for most of the late-1970s, with a bottom two position nearly assured, Swans, under the expert coaching of the disciplinarian John Todd, began a rapid ascent up the premiership ladder to the extent that the club played in (but lost) the 1980 Grand Final against a brilliant Mal Brown coached South Fremantle team that included Basil Campbell; Brad Hardie; Stephen Michael; Joe McKay; the late Maurice Rioli; Tony Morley; and Benny Vigona. Fullpointsfooty.net comments as follows regarding the coaching style of John Todd:

“Whereas the best Western Australian teams have traditionally been renowned for producing highly-skilled, open, flowing football Todd tended to favour a more ‘Victorian’ approach. His teams were tough and determined, capable of brilliance, but more typically achieving victory by relentless running supplemented with substantial amounts of vigour. It is probably no coincidence that Todd went on to become the first coach to steer the West Coast Eagles into the finals as his style was eminently suited to the dog eat dog desperation of the [then] VFL” [http://www.fullpointsfooty.net/Swan_Districts.htm, accessed 5 January 2011].

LP: PFC merchandise stall, 2/7/2011

I was actually there at the moment in 1979 when there was a symbolic “changing of the guard” between declining Perth (1976 and 1977 premiers and 1978 grand finalists) and emergent Swans (premiers in 1982, 1983, and 1984 and 1980 grand finalists). I was sitting high up in the visiting fans’ section of the Lathlain Park grandstand with my late grandfather Herbert Arthur Acott (1906-99) and his best mate Ernie Henderson on this day in 1979. In a tense finish, the emergent Swans held on to win by four points to symbolize the end of the Perth era and the start of the Swans’ era. East et al. (2005, p. 251) report that the date was Monday 16 April 1979 and the final score was: Swan Districts 11.12 (78) defeated Perth 11.8 (74). The official attendance was 11,046. The picture on p. 166 of Dawson’s (2004) book John Todd: Six Decades of Footy shows John Todd embracing his chairman of selectors Bob Manning at the end of the game. Dawson (2004, p. 166) writes that: “There was palpable relief in John’s face on the final siren, with Swans kicking only six points in the last term as Perth fought back from a three goal deficit”. Although never a Swans’ supporter, I was nonetheless caught up in the emotion of the game, and remember running down to the visiting team players’ race (just a wire-chain fence on both sides and over the top) to cheer the Swans’ players as they left the ground. Years later, in the 1998 season when my grandfather was 92-years-old and I was 29, I took him to a Perth versus East Fremantle game at Lathlain Park (either on 4 April or 8 August; East et al., 2005, p. 254). It took forever for me to help him walk up and down the grandstand steps. He enjoyed the game and especially the speed and skill of East Fremantle, the eventual premiers that year. East Fremantle’s team included the veteran Steve Malaxos whom my grandfather remembered for his earlier stints at Claremont and West Coast. The last part of my grandfather’s memory to disappear was that part that stored up the names of football players! On a sunny day, the view from the top of the Lathlain Park grandstand is magnificent with the tree-tops in the middle distance, the blue sky above, and the hills of the Darling Ranges as the backdrop. It is one of WAFL football's truly iconic views [by Kieran James, this revised version is dated 20 November 2013].  

LP: P v SD, 2/7/2011, viewed from can bar

Round 3, 1979 – Perth v Swan Districts, Lathlain Park

Likely line-ups

(Source: The West Australian, Monday, 16 April, 1979, p. 69)

Perth FC

Backs: Noack, Quartermaine, Fotheringhame

Half-backs: Inman, Cook, Roberts

Centres: Watt, Wilson, Johnson

Half-forwards: Currie, Montgomery, Bosustow

Forwards: Kimberley, Farrant, Turner

Ruck: Rosbender, Gibellini, Doyle

Reserves: Lawrence, P Smith

In: Quartermaine, P Smith, Lawrence

Out: Mitsopoulos (injured), Couper, B Smith

Swan Districts FC

Backs: Comerford, Mullooly, Bell

Half-backs: Fogarty, Cransberg, O’Rourke

Centres: P Narkle, Holden, K Narkle

Half-forwards: Casey, Beasley, Bauskis

Forwards: Frost, Olsen, Dikolli

Ruck: Boucher, Nowotny, Neesham

Reserves: Smith, Langsford

In: Bauskis, Bell, Fogarty, Dikolli, Smith, Langsford

Out: Skwirowski (knee), Parker (heel), Reid, Holmes, Chidlow, Richardson

Match results – Monday 16 April 1979

Swan Districts FC 6.1 7.6 11.6 11.12 (78) d Perth FC 2.0 4.2 8.6 11.8 (74)

Scorers: SD: Olsen 4.1, Beasley 3.1, Bauskis 2.1, Dikolli 2.0, Neesham 0.2, Langsford, Casey, Smith, P Narkle, Frost 0.1, Forced 0.2.

P: Bosustow 2.2, Kimberley 2.1, Lawrence 2.0, Gibellini 1.2, Farrant, Doyle, Smith, Currie 1.0, Johnson 0.1, Forced 0.2.

Free kicks: SD: 9, 11, 13, 6 – 39.

P: 5, 11, 12, 7 – 35.

Official attendance: 11,046 (from WAFL Online)

Weather: Fine with moderate north-easterly winds.

(Source: The West Australian, Tuesday, 17 April, 1979, p. 74)

Best players:

1 Simon Beasley (SD): The focal point for the Swan Districts attack all day. Marked brilliantly and kicked strongly and with purpose.

2 Alan Montgomery [Kieran James' note: correct spelling is Allan Montgomery] (P): A brilliant aerialist who covered plenty of ground and was the key man in the Perth forward moves.

3 Gerard Neesham (SD): A damaging rover who worked hard midfield, but spoilt his work with poor disposal.

Team rankings:

SD: S Beasley 1, G Neesham 2, K Narkle 3, G Frost 4, R Boucher 5, P Narkle 6.

P: A Montgomery 1, D Farrant 2, N Fotheringhame 3, J Doyle 4, G Gibellini 5, W Rosbender 6.

	Round 3	Table	WAFL	1979
	Played	Won	Lost	%	Points
EAST FREM*	3	3	0	134.62	12
EAST PERTH	3	2	1	156.70	8
CLAREMONT	3	2	1	127.65	8
SOUTH FREM**	3	2	1	109.81	8
Perth	3	1	2	118.84	4
Swan Dist***	3	1	2	84.04	4
West Perth	3	1	2	62.63	4
Subiaco	3	0	3	49.08	0

*Eventual 1979 WAFL premiers

**Eventual 1979 WAFL runners-up and 1980 premiers

*** Eventual 1980 WAFL runners-up

(Source: The West Australian, Tuesday, 17 April, 1979, p. 74)

Match analysis

Quotes from COLIN HOPKINS:

Old Victoria Park station (prior to renovations)

“Swan Districts pulled off the confidence-booster they needed so badly when they hung on to beat Perth by four points to bring up their first win for the season in the match at Lathlain Park yesterday.

“Swans won this fiery, bruising encounter 11.12 to 11.8 to show that they are a force to be reckoned with in the race for places in the top four this season.

“The young Swans side had trouble finishing off their work in the first two matches of the season – and it almost looked likely to be the same story yesterday.

“Their inexperience almost cost them the game as Perth came back with everything they had.

“Swans deserved their win. They were 25 points ahead at quarter time, 22 at half-time and 18 points at three-quarter time.

“Perth played with great purpose and put their opponents under pressure in the final quarter. But they just could not reduce the deficit and paid the penalty for their slow start in the opening quarter.

“The match was dominated by the performances of rival centre-half-forwards Simon Beasley (Swan Districts) and Alan Montgomery (Perth).

“Beasley showed all the attributes of a future state player to provide the focal point in the Swans’ attack for most of the day.

“Montgomery, who marks brilliantly, played with flair and purpose and he is improving with every game.

“The move of Gerard Neesham to the side’s No. 1 roving position turned into an outstanding success for Swans coach John Todd and he was one of the heroes of the victory.

“Neesham was the busiest rover on the ground. He was a prolific kick-getter and was well supported by Skender Dikolli.

“They made the most of the feast of opportunities provided by ruckmen Greg Frost and Ron Boucher.

“The two Swan Districts big men continually thumped the ball forward and it was left to [Wim] Rosbender to try to counter the pair. Rosbender worked hard, but lacked support and the Perth rovers were clearly beaten by their opponents.

“Perth now lack a touch of brilliance in the small-man department. Former Essendon player Andy Wilson was a dismal flop yesterday.

“John Doyle started in the centre, one of eight positional changes made by Perth coach Ken Armstrong to the pre-match line-up.

“Barry Kimberley battled hard all day as a rover, but he did not do the damage of Neesham, who looks likely to be a tremendous acquisition for Swans.

“Swans received great drive from wingmen Keith and Phil Narkle and it was only in the second half that [Alan] Johnson started to come into his own.

“Perth are going to find it much harder to force their way into the final four this season.

“Swans have the ability to go on with the job. They are a side with the physical capacity to test most combinations and they have a neat balance in their team.

Old Lathlain station (now demolished), looking south

“Beasley is a fine player and the high-marking Mark Olsen, who kicked four goals yesterday, represents real danger in front of goals.

“However, Olsen must learn to fight harder when the ball hits the ground and yesterday Neil Fotheringhame overcame a slow start to outpoint him.

“Perth were well served by Doug Farrant, and ruck-rover Gary Gibellini weighed in with a solid second half.

“Tom Bell [SD] made an encouraging return to league ranks in a back-pocket, Tom Mullooly managed to contain the brilliant bursts of Peter Bosustow and Graeme Comerford continues to show great potential in the other pocket.

“Todd would have been happy with the performances of half-back flankers Glenn O’Rourke and Jon Fogarty, who will improve with experience.

“Swans finally learnt how to win a match yesterday and this should act as a stimulus in coming weeks.”

(Source: Colin Hopkins (1979), “Swans learn how to win”, The West Australian, Tuesday, 17 April, 1979, pp. 74, 76) [archival research by Kieran James].

Perth v SD, Lathlain Park can bar, 2/7/2011