Round 8, 1984 SANFL - Central District Bulldogs 14.12 (96) d Port Adelaide Magpies 8.16 (64), Alberton Oval, Adelaide

Port Adelaide Magpies supporters at Foxtel Cup match versus Claremont at Subiaco Oval, Perth, 16 July 2011. David Granger aka "Grave Danger" was a huge cult hero for Port Adelaide Magpies fans in the mid-1980s.

Alberton Oval scoreboard bank, 11/8/2012 v Glenelg

An example of the “illusion of violence” (Marsh, 1978) among the cheer squads would be at Port Adelaide Magpies. I attended the Port Adelaide versus Central District game at Alberton Oval in May 1984. It was a day of driving rain and relentless wind but much of the terracing on the outer side of the ground was full of hardcore Port Adelaide cheer squad members or hooligans in black Victorian-style duffel coats with favourite players’ names and numbers pasted on the backs in white lettering. The Port Adelaide people were not much concerned at all about the rain, few had umbrellas, and they certainly were a tough mob. Their main hero was a borderline player called David Granger who had been suspended for eighteen months for on-field violence on the field-of-play. He was renamed “Grave Danger” by the Port faithful and the South Australian media and he served as a hero for Port Adelaide fans in the way that Phil Bradmore was for us at West Perth. After the May 1984 game I was caught up in the atmosphere of the Port Adelaide crew and, instead of taking the train back to the city-centre, by mistake I was swept along with the crowd taking the train in the other direction north-west to Port Adelaide. After realizing my error I was told by the conductor to stay on the train until it turned around at the end of the line. I made it back to my city centre hotel at 8.30pm. During the mid-1990s, Port Adelaide became the second Adelaide-based AFL club, and Port Adelaide Power debuted in the AFL in the 1997 season taking up the vacant position that was created by the coerced and unfortunate Fitzroy and Brisbane Bears’ merger. However, Port Adelaide had been required by the SANFL to form a separate club to operate Port Adelaide Magpies in the SANFL (South Australian National Football League) competition. On 17 November 2010, Homfray (2010) and Partland (2010) announced in the Adelaide Advertiser that the SANFL had permitted the two clubs to merge into one thus overcoming the confusion of the past decade as to which club was “the real Port Adelaide”. I thank Susan Briggs of University of South Australia for supplying me these articles. Fullpointsfooty.net comments on the problematic “two clubs” arrangement at Port Adelaide as follows:

“The converse of this, the emergence of two distinct and independent clubs where previously there had only been one, is almost, but not quite, unheard of.  It happened most famously in 1996, when the Port Adelaide Football Club, the oldest and most successful in the SANFL, effectively reproduced itself by a kind of fission: one club, henceforth to be known as the Port Adelaide Magpies, would continue to compete in the SANFL, with another achieving elevation to the AFL” [http://www.fullpointsfooty.net/port_adelaide.htm; accessed 22 December 2010].

[by Kieran James, 23 January 2012]. 

Round 8, 1984 SANFL – Central District Bulldogs v Port Adelaide Magpies, Alberton Oval

Port Adelaide Magpies team, Subiaco Oval, 16/7/2011

Before this round Port Adelaide was “Won 7, Lost 0” and Central was “Won 6, Lost 1”, and sitting second (third after the Saturday games of the split-round behind South Adelaide which was "Won 6, Lost 2" but with a worse percentage). The East Perth FC premiership defender Steve Curtis returned for Port Adelaide for this Round 8 clash after being sidelined by a hamstring injury sustained in Round 1 [by Kieran James, 23 January 2012].

(Source: Adelaide Advertiser, Monday, 21 May, 1984, p. 33 and Geoff Kingston (1984), “Curtis back in Port team: West regains its captain”, Adelaide Advertiser, Monday, 21 May, p. 33)

Historic grandstand Alberton Oval, 11/8/2012

Likely line-ups

(Source: Adelaide Advertiser, Monday, 21 May, 1984, p. 33)

Port Adelaide Magpies FC

Backs: Curtis, Kennedy, A Williams

Half-backs: Owens, Leslie, Harvey

Centres: Anderson, Bradley, Kinnear

Half-forwards: Knight, Russell, C Ebert

Forwards: R Ebert, Evans, Belton

Ruck: Johnston, S Williams, Mahney

Interchange: Harris, Gill

Out: Giles (knee)

In: Curtis

Central Districts Bulldogs FC

Backs: Nolan, Beythier, Thomas

Half-backs: Prior, Hannam, Hearn

Centres: Bubner, Roe, Edwards

Half-forwards: Krieg, Wright, Connelly

Forwards: Norsworthy, Grant, Wilson

Ruck: Cousins, van Dommele, Platten

Interchange from: Moulds, Vivian, Pitman, Dearaugo

Out: Boehm (back), Fraser (concussion), Barilla

In: Bubner, Prior (recovered), Grant, Hearn, Dearaugo

Selections:

GEOFF KINGSTON: Port Adelaide Magpies

ALAN SHIELL: Port Adelaide Magpies

MERV AGARS: Port Adelaide Magpies

PETER HAYNES: Port Adelaide Magpies

ANDREW BOTH: Port Adelaide Magpies

(Source: Adelaide Advertiser, Saturday, 19 May, 1984, p. 21)

Match results - Monday, 21 May 1984

Central District Bulldogs FC 3.3 5.6 11.10 14.12 (96) d Port Adelaide Magpies FC 2.1 4.8 7.9 8.16 (64)

Scorers: CD: Bubner 2.3, Patten 2.2, Wilson, Grant, Wright, Connelly 2.0, Norsworthy 1.4, Edwards 1.1, Prior 0.1, Forced 0.1.

PAM: Evans 5.1, Russell 1.2, Harris 1.1, Mahney 1.0, Knight 0.2, Belton, R Ebert, Bradley, Kinnear 0.1, Forced 0.6.

Best: CD: Platten, Thomas, Roe, Hannam, Nolan, Bubner, van Dommele

PAM: Leslie, Johnston, Kennedy, Evans, Russell

Attendance: 13,000 (approx)

(Source: Adelaide Advertiser, Tuesday, 22 May, 1984, p. 36)

Monday temperatures: 19.1C (minimum), 21.8C (maximum)

(Source: Adelaide Advertiser, Tuesday, 22 May, 1984, p. 45)

Advertiser Trophy:

J Platten (CD) – 3 votes, M Leslie (PA) - 2 votes, J Thomas (CD) - 1 vote

Advertiser Trophy Leaders 1984 (after Round 8):

C Bradley (PA), M Naley (SA) – 12 votes; N Craig (St) – 11 votes; D Marshall (G), M Aish (N) – 8 votes; S Kernahan (G), P Martin (SA), M Mickan (WA), J Platten (CD) – 7 votes; M Leslie (PA), D Tiller (NA), S Stretch (WT) – 6 votes

(Source: Adelaide Advertiser, Tuesday, 22 May, 1984, p. 36)

Selected match statistics (Adelaide Advertiser, Tuesday, 22 May, 1984, p. 36):

CD: Platten 21 kicks-5 marks-3 handballs, Thomas 17-3-2, Hannam 16-4-3, van Dommele 15-3-7, Connelly 13-3-6, Bubner 11-5-6

PAM: Kinnear 20-3-0, R Ebert 16-2-8, Leslie 15-6-3, Russell 15-5-7, Bradley 11-0-6, Belton 10-1-7, Gill 10-5-5, S Williams 10-4-5

Alberton Oval, reserves game, 11/8/2012

Coaches’ Comments:

Kevin Neale (Central District): “I thought we played well under pressure.

“Our teamwork stood up well. It was the sort of commitment we have been searching for. “Over the past week and again today, all the players agreed this win was something worth achieving. Now I hope they will stay on the grindstone. They must realise they have to work hard all the time”.

Russell Ebert (Port Adelaide Magpies): “They worked harder than we did. They hit in harder and controlled the ball.

“They were too good on the day. Their attitude and commitment were a lot better than ours. They had the breaks and benefited from the heavy ball and the wet conditions after half time”.

Source: Alan Shiell (1984), “Bulldogs’ bite worse than their bark”, Adelaide Advertiser, Tuesday, 22 May, p. 36.

Match analysis

PA Magpies cheer squad, 11/8/2012

Quotes from ALAN SHIELL:

“Any lingering doubt that Central was an impostor filling one of the top three positions on the ladder were dispelled by its 32-point defeat of previously unbeaten Port Adelaide at Alberton Oval yesterday – in one of the most physically demanding battles of the season.

“It was only Central’s eighth win in the 50 matches between the clubs (since 1964) and its third in 18 trips to the graveyard of so many teams.

“The sheer joy the Bulldogs derived from yesterday’s result, surprising in view of their 47-point loss to West Adelaide at Richmond last Saturday week, was not lost on new coach Kevin Neale.

“However, the difference was only eight points at quarter-time and four-points at half-time before Central asserted its on-the-day superiority by adding 9.6 to 4.8 in the second half, including a match-winning 6.4 to 3.1 with the wind in the third term.

“Two magnificent long goals by tall, athletic wingman Peter Bubner at the five and seven-minute marks of the third quarter triggered Central’s breakaway and signalled the beginning of the end for Port, which was handicapped by Craig Bradley’s virus and stomach upset and the early thigh injury to Greg Anderson.

“The Dogs also were inspired, as usual, by the courage and creativity of Superpup John Platten, who was a terrier in and around the packs (if only he would have his hair cut...!)

“Central’s defence, in which Jamie Thomas and Canberra recruits Brett Hannam and Stephen Nolan were most conspicuous, repelled numerous Port thrusts, many of which lacked the necessary directness.

“In attack, Port had to rely almost solely on the always-dangerous [Tim] Evans, who kicked its first five goals, and sporadic bursts from vigorous centre-half-forward Dwayne Russell.

“While Central barely had a passenger, Port had too many players who were unsighted for most of the day.

“Among the more notable exceptions were centre-half-back Martin Leslie, ruckman Russell Johnston, full-back Dexter Kennedy, Evans and Russell.

“Much of the last quarter was played in semi-darkness, adding weight to the theory that league matches ought to begin at 2p.m., not 20 minutes later”.

Source: Alan Shiell (1984), “Bulldogs’ bite worse than their bark”, Adelaide Advertiser, Tuesday, 22 May, p. 36 [archival research by Kieran James].

Port Adelaide Magpies v Glenelg, 11/8/2012

To watch a selection from Central District v Port Adelaide Magpies, Alberton Oval, 2011:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsAWO6c3xb4

To watch a selection from 1984 SANFL Grand Final Port Adelaide Magpies v Norwood:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzU06TU781U

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].

First semi-final, 1985 - Swan Districts FC 24.14 (158) d West Perth FC 19.12 (126), Subiaco Oval

West Perth 1985 team (photo courtesy Lost WAFL Facebook page)

West Perth earned a rematch against Swan Districts in the 1985 first semi-final played on 31 August 1985 at Subiaco Oval. In those days there was a grassed northern bank at the city end and there was concrete terracing all along the Roberts Road or eastern side of the ground. Those were the general admission ticket areas back then. In that era, for every final, apart from the Grand Final, there was no need to pre-book tickets at Subiaco Oval. In those days semi-finals would attract between 20,000 and 35,000 people and the oval itself could accommodate close to 50,000. Nowadays grand finals struggle to attract even the type of crowds that semi-finals attracted in the WAFL’s GLory Days. In the newspapers leading up to the game the media columnists were split fairly evenly in terms of who they thought would win the game. Swan Districts’ Garry Sidebottom was widely and correctly perceived to be the wild-card who, on a good day, could single-handedly destroy West Perth up forward (Christian, 1985a; Stocks, 1985b) which is exactly what did happen. West Perth also suffered from Peter Menaglio being out injured (Christian, 1985b); John Duckworth not having recovered from an absence caused by the after-effects of swallowing a fish bone (Christian, 1985b); and, although Graeme Comerford, Les Fong, and George Michalczyk played, they were well below their bests as a result of carrying niggling injuries into the game from the qualifying rounds (Christian, 1985b). Swans’ tough centreman Tony Solin had also been presumed to miss the game on the Monday of the lead-up week (Christian, 1985b) but returned to play a very strong game. Kim Rogers and the veteran Peter Murnane missed the last qualifying game versus a lacklustre Claremont, but Murnane was expected to return for the semi-final and be able to slot in well to replace the injured Peter Menaglio (Christian, 1985b). As it turned out Murnane did play but was in no commentator’s best-players list whilst Rogers’ match statistics of one mark, zero kicks, and two effective handballs suggest that he was still incapacitated.

On first semi-final day, 1985, Mike B. and I took an early morning bus from Booragoon to the city-centre and then the train to the West Leederville station. We [West Perth FC cheer squad 1984-86] had arranged to meet at the Subiaco Road entrance gates, in the north-west corner of the ground, rather than at the more crowded Roberts Road gates in the north-east corner. We had planned beforehand to get tickets on the day and to be first in the gates when they opened which must have been fixed at about 8am or 9am. We needed to be early to claim a seat immediately behind the fence on the three rows of wooden seats in front of the grassed bank. Mike and Pete C. were ahead of us in the line with their red-and-blue flags and West Perth replica jerseys. I can’t recall if they already had their tickets and were waiting for us outside the queue or whether they were simply there already ahead of us in the queue. We all obtained the general admission tickets quickly and the four of us at least (others may have been there) were near the front when the gates opened. The general admission tickets entitled you access to the grassed northern bank and to the concrete terracing but not to the grandstands. As was the practice in that era, we sprinted down the grassed bank when the gates opened and claimed a section of seats directly behind the fence, sufficient to accommodate the core fifteen members we usually had. We claimed around six spots on each of the first two wooden seat rows as had been agreed by everyone at the final qualifying game the week before. We were seated in the north-west corner of the ground, directly behind the fence, in around the same place as Perth fans placed a “Chris Mitsopoulos” fence banner during the 1977 WAFL Grand Final (see the 1977 Grand Final DVD available from Perth Football Club or at the merchandise store at Lathlain Park on WAFL match days).

We settled down to a long day of watching the early Colts and Reserves games which, coincidentally, all involved West Perth. Our regular core members all arrived, one by one and in twos and threes, and were offered seats in our “reserved” section. The crowd in the grassed banked area built up steadily throughout the day. By starting time of the main game most of the people seated on the grassed bank had given way to people standing up. In that era the bars and the food stands were located right up at the top of the grassed bank. None of us was a drinker which, in hindsight, is somewhat surprising as several of us were eighteen- or nineteen-years-old by August of 1985.

We were going to enjoy the day; again there was a carnival atmosphere, but we had been metaphorically sobered up by the recent encounter with the Swan Districts’ fans at Bassendean Oval so were careful to avoid trouble. It was always uncertain which team the bulk of the crowd would support in finals games and, if you had arrived at the ground very early, you did not want to later find yourself surrounded by opposition supporters. We had all had experiences of West Perth losing final round matches. The team had entered the final four, but not made the Grand Final, in 1976, 1977, and 1978, and again in 1982 in Dennis Cometti’s first year as coach. We were all too young to have properly experienced the 1975 premiership win; this day in 1985 our core group, excluding Ben, Tony, "Half" [Michael], Mario, and "Thommo Junior" [Thommo's younger brother], ranged in age from fifteen to nineteen so in 1975 this core group would have been aged from five to nine. We learned not to have high hopes of West Perth come finals’ time. To be totally honest we all expected a loss but we would have loved a win. In the end West Perth was duly defeated by Swan Districts in the first semi-final of 1985, 24.14 (158) to 19.12 (126) in front of an official attendance of 26,508 supporters (Atkinson, 2008, p. 335). We had not been humiliated but I do remember clearly that the result had never been seriously in doubt. The result did not surprise us at all as we were the West Perth fans of the drought era! Garry Sidebottom was unbeatable with his nine goals, the equal record highest score by any footballer in a WAFL final round match. Dawson (2004, p. 221) writes that: “[Swans’ rover Barry] Kimberley played the kick behind the play role to perfection when West Perth had the breeze, ensuring Swans path to the preliminary final”. Our losing score of nineteen goals was commendable and, according to Atkinson, on most days would have been good enough to win the game (Brian Atkinson, personal conversation, 8 July 2011). A look at the scoring records suggest that West Perth in 1985 suffered from the lack of a regular full-forward with the club’s on-ball and half-forward-line running players bobbing up to kick much of our scores. Mark Stephens (27 games, 1982, 1984-86; Atkinson, 2008, p. 375) was named in The West Australian newspaper to play full-forward in the first semi-final but he kicked no goals or points and may not even have played. Top scorers for the day for the West Perth club were centre-half-forward Phil Bradmore with 4.1 and Derek Kickett with 4.1. Running players were the only other West Perth men to kick more than one goal with the remaining multiple goal scorers being Darren Bewick 3.1, Corry Bewick 2.2, Les Fong 2.2, and Peter Murnane 2.0. The presence of full-forward Sidebottom and Swans’ mental toughness honed by years of successful finals’ campaigns were the clearly the two main differences between the teams.

In the end, Swan Districts failed to progress beyond the preliminary final in that year of 1985, and Ron Alexander’s East Fremantle defeated Haydn Bunton Junior’s Subiaco by a mere five points in the Grand Final. I watched the Grand Final not with the cheer squad but with my father and grandfather seated in the middle tier of the three-tier grandstand at the southern end of Subiaco Oval. After West Perth had been eliminated, it was understood that the cheer squad’s duties and commitments were over for the year. I can remember the three of us walking back to the car after the game, heading back into Subiaco proper, and stopping occasionally to let my grandfather take a short rest.

Ironically, to pour salt into the wound, West Perth defeated the eventual premiers East Fremantle two out of three times in the 1985 qualifying rounds. None of our group would have regarded East Fremantle as clear favourites had we played them in the Grand Final. We probably had their measure. Football is made up of vagaries, trivia, and ironies such as this. In fact, from 1976 to 1986, the pre-West Coast Eagles part of the drought era, West Perth generally had a strong record against the eventual premiers. As we believed, West Perth could beat anyone on its day, throughout the drought era, with the possible exception of 1979. However, from 1976 through to 1985, we were always choked or outplayed or outmuscled in those final round matches we did happen to play in. It might have been a nerves problem and/or a matter of self-belief. We were up against highly professional and disciplined teams coached by the likes of such legendary coaches as Ken Armstrong (Perth), Mal Brown (South Fremantle and Perth), Haydn Bunton Junior (Subiaco), and John Todd (Swan Districts).

Those hardcore West Perth supporters of the drought era were not foolish enough to fail to see a pattern at work. The team clearly ran on enthusiasm, emotion, and passion during those years. Whereas most other clubs started slowly under a new coach only to reach first the finals, then to lose a grand final, and then finally to win one, West Perth peaked in the first year of a new coach and then the trend was downhill until the next new coach was brought in. For example, Perth lost in 1974 but won in 1976 and 1977; East Perth lost in 1976 but won in 1978; South Fremantle lost in 1979 but won in 1980; Swans lost in 1980 only to win in 1982, 1983, and 1984; East Fremantle lost in 1977 but won in 1979 and later lost in 1984 but won in 1985; whilst Subiaco lost in 1985 but won in 1986. Later on, VFL/AFL club West Coast, famously, lost in 1991 but won in 1992 and 1994. The principle even applied to pre-drought West Perth when it lost in 1973 but won in 1975. It was certainly true, in that era, that “you had to lose a grand final before you could win one” and this almost became wise advice in Western Australia not only in football but in life in general. Dawson (2004, p. 183) also, referencing this period in WAFL history, refers to what he terms “an old football adage”, i.e. “you must lose one [a grand final] to understand what is needed to win one”. However, West Perth won in 1975 in Graham Campbell’s first year, reached the finals in 1982 in Dennis Cometti’s first year, and reached the finals again in John Wynne’s first year in 1985. However, it failed to make the finals in 1983 and 1984 and again in Wynne’s second year in 1986. Even in the immediate post-West Coast era the club made the finals under George Michalczyk in his first season in 1989 only to be wooden spooners for the next two seasons under him (Brian Atkinson, personal conversation, 8 July 2011). The theory that this constituted a pattern was a fairly convincing one although, in all of the years, there were other factors that also could have been used to explain the various rises and falls. It seems that the playing group became enthusiastic under a new coach but then became bored and lackadaisical by that coach’s second year. It didn’t seem to be a very mature response to the outside observer [by Kieran James, 3 January 2012].

         1985 First Semi-final – Swan Districts v West Perth, Subiaco Oval.

Likely line-ups

(Source: The West Australian, Saturday, 31 August, 1985, p. 191)

West Perth FC

Backs: Munns, Comerford, Evans

Half-backs: Warwick, C Nelson, Mugavin

Centres: Mifka, Bell, D Bewick

Half-forwards: Murnane. Bradmore, Fong

Forwards: Chaplin, Stephens, Kickett

Ruck: Rogers, Laidley, C Bewick

Interchange: Gastev, A Nelson, N Fong, Turley

Swan Districts FC

Backs: Hetherington, Mullooly, Ware

Half-backs: Fogarty, Sartori, Skwirowski

Centres: Allen, Solin, Penny

Half-forwards: Hutton, Rance, Holmes

Forwards: Caton, Sidebottom, Kimberley

Ruck: Johns, Langsford, Taylor

Interchange: Ahmat, Holtzman, Outridge, Richardson, Maher

Selections:

GEOFF CHRISTIAN: Swan Districts

KEN CASELLAS: West Perth

DAVID MARSH: Swan Districts

GARY STOCKS: West Perth

TIM GOSSAGE: West Perth

MAL BROWN (PERTH COACH): Swan Districts

GRAHAM MOSS (CLAREMONT COACH): West Perth

Other WAFL coaches’ predictions:

MAL BROWN (PERTH COACH): “West Perth’s biggest asset is their pace and Peter Menaglio will be a loss in that regard. In addition, Peter Murnane and George Michalczyk are under an injury cloud and that could see them struggle to maintain pressure midfield.

“If West Perth had all their little men fit I think they would win. But Swan Districts get players like Jon Fogarty, Kevin Taylor, Tom Mullooly and Joe Ahmat back for this game and that must give them a boost.

“On the other hand, West Perth have a lot of young players who will be playing in their first final. I think that who ever wins the game will play in the grand final”.

GRAHAM MOSS (CLAREMONT COACH): “Swans have lost that bit of toughness which helped them cut out running players in recent years and I think they will have problems curbing the West Perth midfield players.

“Phil Bradmore has been in exceptional form at centre-half-forward and he complements the work of the smaller players.

“If West Perth have any problems they appear to be in defence where they will have to check players like Garry Sidebottom, Murray Rance and Brett Hutton [i.e. Brent Hutton].

“It will be important for Graeme Comerford and company to bring the ball to the ground and allow some of the smaller players to clear it.

“On their day West Perth are a very good side and if they get their tails up early they will be hard to beat. But I do not think they are as good as Subiaco or East Fremantle”.

(Source: The West Australian, Saturday, 31 August, 1985, p. 191)

Match results - Saturday, 31 August, 1985, Subiaco Oval

Swan Districts FC 7.3 12.6 17.8 24.14 (158) d West Perth FC 4.3 9.7 14.8 19.12 (126)

Scorers: SD: Sidebottom 9.1, Taylor 5.2, Holmes 5.1, Caton 3.1, Allen 1.1, Rance 1.0, Langsford 0.2, Ahmat, Hetherington, Ware, Solin 0.1, Forced 0.2.

WP: Bradmore 4.1, Kickett 4.1, D Bewick 3.1, C Bewick, Fong 2.2, Murnane 2.0, Chaplin 1.0, Gastev 1.0, Mifka, E vans, Munns 0.1, Forced 0.2.
Official attendance: 26,508 (from WAFL Online)

Weather: Fine.

Team rankings GEOFF CHRISTIAN:

SD: G Sidebottom 1, W Skwirowski 2, B Kimberley 3, M Johns 4, K Taylor 5, A Solin 6.

WP: P Bradmore 1, R Munns 2, D Bewick 3, P Mifka 4, B Bell 5, C Bewick 6.

KEN CASELLAS

SD: M Johns 1, G Sidebottom 2, K Taylor 3, A Solin 4, D Holmes 5, W Skwirowski 6.

WP: P Bradmore 1, C Bewick 2, D Bewick 3, R Munns 4, P Mifka 5, D Laidley 6.

DAVID MARSH

SD: G Sidebottom 1, B Kimberley 2, K Taylor 3, W Skwirowski 4, A Solin 5, M Johns 6.

WP: P Bradmore 1, R Munns 2, D Bewick 3, P Mifka 4, B Bell 5, C Bewick 6.

GARY STOCKS

SD: G Sidebottom 1, B Kimberley 2, W Skwirowski 3, A Solin 4, D Holmes 5, M Johns 6

WP: P Bradmore 1, D Bewick 2, R Munns 3, P Mifka 4, C Bewick 5, B Bell 6.

(Source: The West Australian, Monday 2 September, 1985, p. 73)

Selected match statistics (The West Australian, Monday 2 September, 1985, p. 73):

SD: G Sidebottom 5 marks-14 kicks-2 effective handballs; A Solin 3-18-12; B Kimberley 5-19-9; K Taylor 3-15-11.

WP: P Bradmore 8-18-3; C Bewick 3-20-4; D Bewick 2-19-4; R Munns 8-6-12; P Mifka 6-17-5; K Rogers 1-0-2; L Fong 8-16-8; J Gastev 7-13-4; P Murnane 4-9-2; D Laidley 2-15-2.


To watch a five-minute section of this 1985 match on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-X3c3FhEjg

Coach’s Comment:

John Wynne (WP): “I don’t think you can be pleased with a losing effort, but it does hold us in good stead for next year”.

Source: Gary Stocks (1985), “Disappointing end for Kim Rogers”, The West Australian, Monday, 2 September, p. 72.

Garry Sidebottom Comment: “Kicking goals is my business, so when our other players work like they did today, it makes my job easier”

(Source: David Marsh (1985), “Sidey’s personal goal”, The West Australian, Monday, 2 September, p. 73)

Media quotes re Phil Bradmore’s performance:
“In Saturday’s match against Swan Districts, Bradmore capped off his most successful season in league football with another outstanding performance at centre-half-forward.

“He almost single-handedly kept the Falcons in the game in the first three quarters and he finished with eight marks, 18 kicks and three effective handpasses – and a suspected broken hand”.

Bradmore’s game was the “best performance of his career”.

Bradmore “has developed into one of the game’s most colourful characters.”

(Source: Gary Stocks (1985), “Bradmore proves his point”, The West Australian, Monday, 2 September, p. 72)

Match analysis

Quotes from the late GEOFF CHRISTIAN:

“The performances in all three grades have left West Perth with a strong foundation from which to build their 1986 campaign.

“...it was to West Perth’s credit that they managed 19.12 and retained a chance of winning until early in the final quarter.

“The performance was a testimony to the Falcons’ spirit of 1985.

“Bradmore received a meagre tally of 14 [Sandover] medal votes, a classic case of where the work done by a player during a season was undervalued.

“West Perth held an edge across the centreline.

Bradmore was “the best man afield” in the opinion of some.

“[Darren] Bewick confirmed that he is one of the game’s most exciting first year players.

Ross Munns was the “least experienced defender” but “most effective”.

“Full-back [Graeme] Comerford battled gamely against the in-form Sidebottom who could do little, if anything wrong. In that mood Sidebottom would kick goals, no matter [who] the opponent [was].

(Source: Geoff Christian (1985), “Falcons are on the right track”, The West Australian, Monday, 2 September, p. 72) [archival research by Kieran James].

The late GEOFF CHRISTIAN (1934-98) was a remarkable sports-writer who wrote in an excellent, masterful, and charming prose style that few could duplicate today. He could make a Round 13 match between the two bottom-placed clubs played in pouring rain in front of 4,000 people sound as important, exciting, and earth-shattering as the Russian Revolution or the Arab Spring! His genuine enthusiasm for the WAFL and later for West Coast Eagles was authentic, genuine, and infectious. I love the descriptions, still in place in 1984, of the VFL, SANFL, and WAFL all as “league football” and, by implication, worthy to be called tier-one status [brief bio by Jack Frost].

Read about the 1985 WAFL Grand Final East Fremantle v Subiaco at:

http://www.fullpointsfooty.net/sharks_sink_subi.htm