The Coodabeen Champions Competition
Round Twelve
Football is a winter game. This irritating platitude is ringing in stinging ears at footy grounds and OzKick ovals all over... This week Mark Harvey came direct from OzKick to 3AW to accept his chocolate footy for being named by Tony for this year's Wayne Brittain Award . Tony asked Mark to nominate his worst game ever for weather conditions. Harvs didn't hesitate, recalling playing for Keilor Downs against Doutta Stars with the ground underwater. Nominate and describe the worst footy conditions you've ever experienced .
Send your entries to competition@coodabeens.com.au
Date: Sun, 17 Jun 2001 14:53:25 +1000
From: HOPPY
The worst I can ever remember was back in the late 1970s in a game
against Boolarra and Hill End in the Mid Gippsland Football League.
It had been a fairly wet week and I was coaching the Hill End Thirds at
the time. Prior to the game we had to herd the flock of sheep of the
ground and there was a small stream of water flowing down the paddock.
The kids kicked of in what was the most reasonable conditions we had seen
all week but things soon changed. By the time the seconds started the
sleet had set in and when the seniors took the ground at 2.10pm it was
almost dark. The first half was played in a mixture of sleet and snow and
at half time the coach ordered us to have rum in a cup of tea to get us
warm. They were the days prior to interchange and at half time our 19th
and 20th men were no were to be seen.
In the second half the sleet gave way to the occasional hail storm
intermixed with torrential rain. There was no 3/4 time huddle as both
teams agreed to change ends immediately and continue with the game.
By full time we had doubled Boolarras' score 2.6.to 1.3 and headed for
the showers only to find the seconds had used all the hot water. It was a
cold and uncomfortable trip back over the hills for home that night.
Peter Hopkins
Date: Sun, 17 Jun 2001 20:50:05 +1000
From: James Watson
The worst footy conditions i have ever seen was when Essendon played St.
Kilda at Waverley in 1996. It was the famous game where the lights went out
and they had to finish the game on the Tuesday. Malcolm Blight, working for
channel 7, had to hold a candle as a source of light. The fact that the
lights went out was only part of the dangers facing the Saints and Bombers.
It was when the former Saints diehards situated between the two races at
Moorabbin stormed onto the ground, pulled out the behind post from the right
hand end, and began to charge with it using it as a spear and the Bombers
ran off the ground fearing for their safety.
Yours Sincerely, in so far as, being truthful,
James Watson
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2001 12:50:58 +1000
From: "Walby, Andrew"
Preliminary final 1995, Waverley, Richmond versus Geelong, coming off the
semi-final win against Essendon
Only good thing to come of it : Cats got flogged the week after!
Andrew Walby
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2001 16:50:03 +1000
From: Sue Hoysted
Simon,
My wife threatens dire consequences if you keep reading out her name for
my entries. (She'd a confirmed anti-football person). I know the email
address is in her name but that's just another of the prices we pay for
access to modern technology.
Greg (*NOT SUE) Hoysted
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2001 19:12:40 +1000
From: Julian Toohey
gday lads, i was inspired to write this week because as soon as i hopped
in the car during the middle of the competition segment, i had just
played in a game where we won 3 goals 8 to 1 goal 4. the scoring could
have been so low due to the fact half our team had been toa school
formal the previous nights and many were full of ink, and were on less
than a few hours sleep.
i played a game in under 10s for east camberwell against surrey hills, at
the camberwell vfa ground a while back, while there was a novelty of
playing on a ground with2 grand stands, we kids had as much fun bashing
around in the quagmire and trying to define their team mates by the end
of the first quarter.
anyway i can't think of anymore shocking games which are worthy of
winning this weeks comp
julian Toohey
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2001 21:43:03 +1000
From: Gary bourke
Worst game and conditions ever !!
We let a FRIEND purchase reserved seats under cover :
Ist deck of the Ponsford Stand right behind the goals
Right behind the Official Collingwood Cheer Squad
The chanting and the ribbing got so bad at about 10 to 3 I said to my
mate "if we hurry we can catch the three o'clock session of Pearl Harbour !
As the goals raIned, the chanting got stronger, even the singing of the pie
anthem at the 12 minute mark of the last quarter : Have these people no
memories !!
I suffered till the end not wanting to prompt the chant of good bye, good
bye by getting up and leaving
Ithen realised why it was my worst game : As with Pearl Harbour It was a
sneak attack
Collingwood came to play and no body was warned
To avoid this in the future I now ask the UN to ratify the following
" A Declaration of We've Come to PlaY "
Any team that is Coming to Play must inform their opposition of that fact
at least by Wednesday prior to the game That way the opposition can
2 Conditional Surrender : we'll play until three quarter time then go home
early
3 Unconditional Surrender :Have the four points
We Wont turn up as we are getting ready for the FREO Game in
a couple of weeks
Hope this helps as it has helped me !
And for the worst game Try a baseball game played in Ballarat in the snow :
the only time I have worn thermal underwear tops and bottoms while playing
sport !
Or Baseball as well when Caulfield 3rds played Melbourne 3rds at the Albert
Ground and Caulfield fielded for nearly an hour and a quarter straight
before Melbourne had three outs in their first innings > My neck got sore
watching the balls get hit over my head : yes I pitched for about half an
hour in one innings after the usual pitcher collapsed with exhaustion...
Game Time saved us from another innings
Gary Bourke
Date: Tue, 19 Jun 2001 09:38:29 +1000
From: Tim Goddard
Simon,
Worst footballing experience?
I BARRACK FOR GEELONG!!!!!!!
Do these numbers ring a bell? 89? 92? 94? 95?
How about these teams? Hawthorn? West Coast? Bulldogs?
Cheers
tim g
Date: Tue, 19 Jun 2001 14:07:56 +1000
From: Andrew Robertson
Your competition ignited a not so memorable moment in my Football
career playing for the Hopetoun Devils against Berri-Culgoa in the then
Southern Mallee Football league. Playing at Berriwillock we looked
forward to displaying our skills on a rather balmy September afternoon at
the ^²Berri^Œ Ground, especially when the days leading up to the game had
been rather wet. Upon arrival my teammates commented on a rather
pungent smell coming from the ground. Being in a primary production
area we considered it to be a smell from a local piggery or
slaughterhouse. Ten minutes into the game our fears were realised when
scattered throughout the ground were the remains of the bodily
excretions of bulls and horses- the result of Berri^³s first and last fund
raising Rodeo a week earlier. ^²Pads^Œ often the sizes of Frisbees were
found to be interrupting our ball bouncing skills, short passes and
leading. I can still picture our spearhead; Moose falling over cow dung
as he made a lead out from full forward.
I distinctively remember the smell of the players in the change rooms at
half time as we scrapped chucks of manure off our knees, arms and legs.
Never the less in true Mallee style the game continued. By Tuesday the
following week half the players were ill. Most due to infections brought
about through contact of the excretion of bulls and horses. One of our
players was even hospitalised.
Andy Robertson
Date: Tue, 19 Jun 2001 15:58:30 +1000
From: "Bishop, Brad"
Similar to what Harvs has described as his Wayne Brittain Award winner, the
worst conditions I have ever seen at a game of football were when playing
for Stawell against 1990s powerclub Minyip/Murtoa in the Wimmera Football
League.
Most sports fans only get to see Central Park, Stawell when it is in its
most pristine condition at Easter time, but I can assure that was definitely
not the case two years ago for the match between reigning WFL premier
Minyip/Murtoa and aspiring heir to the throne, Stawell.
As great a ground as Central Park is, it drainage is not up there with that
of the leading country Victorian sporting arenas, therefore leaving it
susceptible to soggy conditions when hit by a couple of days of continuous
rain.
This was the case leading up to the big clash between the Burras (M/M) and
the Warriors (Stawell) and while the surface at the start of the day was of
a soggy nature, it resembled nothing like what spectators were going to see
during the main game.
Incessant rain (not of the drizzle variety) plus three matches prior to the
day's main attractions rendered the ground appearing more like one of the
town's other landmarks - Cato Lake - with puddles of water only being broken
by a muddy mass that is a cricket pitch during the summer months.
Everyone knows that the ball skids on in wet conditions, but that was not
the case this day when the formation of puddles up to four of five inches
deep saw the football just stop dead when landing in the middle of one of
the water masses, much the same as a Sherrin would stop if it had of been
kicked into the Wimmera River.
I am ably qualified to nominate this match as the game played in the worst
conditions that I have ever seen because that is precisely what I did for
all but five minutes of the senior game - watch.
Selected in the side, I started on the bench and that was where I stayed
until the final five minutes of the game, despite me pleading with the coach
to give me a go because I felt I had an advantage over my rivals with the
wetsuit pants I had on which are meant to protect dodgy hamstrings.
The match may have been played in the worst conditions I have witnessed, but
it remains one of the Stawell Football Club's finest performances in recent
years, getting for a 4.8 (32) to 4.4 (28) win over the side that had won the
previous three WFL flags.
Brad Bishop
Date: Tue, 19 Jun 2001 21:22:51 +1000
From: mitchy babe skelly
the worst conditions I ever played in or seen were in
an under 11's game back in 1995.
mitch
Date: Tue, 19 Jun 2001 22:47:18 +1000
From: Luke Gillies
The wettest game of footyI can remember occurred in my first year of
footy, i was playing tackers for Heatherdale against Park Orchards.
Itraining windyfreezing, and I'd lined upina Back Pocket (one of the
few positions in tackers footy that doesn't mean on the ball).
At3/4 time Heatherdale had kicked goal after goal, while Park Orchard
didn't manage a single inside 50 let alone a point.
At three quarter time my clothes where soaking andI couldn't do up my
shoe laces becauseI couldn't move my fingers. To make matters worseI
hadn't had a kick,I hadn't even had a chance.Then our coached made a
move that even Kevin Sheedy wouldn't dream of;
"OK boys, to give a couple of kids a go I want every one to swap ends of
the ground" eg Back Pockets swap with Forward Pockets etc, "You
beauty!"I said think this would meanI'd almost certainly kicka goal.
However it wasn't to be;
Park Orchards had only had 16 players, given that we had a few spare we
gave the other mob a couple of players eachquarter, unfortunatelyI was
standing in the wrong spot at the wrong time "Gillies, you can have a run
for the other boys this quarter"
The opposition coach came to me "You boys seem to have kicked a lot of
goals today,I think I'll put you in Forward Pocket" ...back at the
wrong end of the ground
At the end of the day the scoreboard read;
My stats 0 Kicks 0 Marks 0 Handballs 1 under 9 footballer contemplating
his football future
Luke Gillies
Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2001 19:28:46 +1000
From: Michele Blight
Dear Simon,
Firstly, let me confirm once and for all I am a Roo Girl but I have an
affinity for your coach for obvious reasons.
My worst day at the football occurred on July 3, 1993 at a place called
Princes Park when a team called North Melbourne played another called
Fitzroy. Interesting sidelight is that it is only 8 years ago and all
three names technically have changed.
For reasons I can no longer remember, my mother and I were late. It was
raining cats and dogs and despite there only being us and 13,032 of our
closest personal friends, we could not get a seat undercover. We ended up
sitting in the orange plastic bucket seats under the John Elliott Stand
on the wing. We still had our umbrella up, again something that is not
allowed 8 years down the track, and being the dutiful daughter I shared
it with mum. This meant I was leaning to one side and unfortunately this
meant I was sitting in water for the whole game.
It rained all day, we lost by one point, and John McCarthy played his one
and only good game of his career against us having been swapped for John
Blakey (we got the better deal there). After the game rather than going
straight home to the far east suburbs we had already arranged to go to
the Social Club for a meal. I changed clothes but as a result of sitting
in water all day I still had a wet behind. No matter how long I stood
next to the blow dryer in the ladies room my backside was still wet, and
that was the way it stayed until I got home late that night.
At least I didn’t get wet at the 1998 Grand Final and by then I had
seen my beloved Rooboys win a flag. That is why this game remains my
worst day at the football.
Michele Blight
Date: Wed, 20 Jun 2001 15:16:27
From: stuart mcarthur
Dear Simon,
The worst game ever was the 1987 MCG Richmond/Swans Tony Jewell hair-tearing
debacle.
The Tiges had just come off a thrashing by Collingwood by 1 goal after
leading by 8 goals in the third, to go down to the Swans by 1 goal after
leading by 8 goals in the third.
Halfway through the third quarter Capper, to our delight, was still
kickless, then John Manton stuffed his kick-out, it went to Capper and he
kicked his first goal of seven.
To create theatre, the AFL stretched the last quarter out to 36 minutes JUST
to shepherd the Swans come-back trajectory a notch across the Tigers'
flat-liner.
We got home to see Mal Walden chuckling as he introduced Channel 7's
end-of-bulletin human interest grab, which was Tony Jewell doing Basil
Fawlty in the coaches box.
The 11 o'clock news showed Juan Antonio Samaranch standing up and declaring
"This Sydoney game has been the worst games ever!"
The worst game I've listened to was Richmond v AAAs, Arden Street, early
nineties, when Jeff Hogg marked on the siren and lined up to win Richmond
the game.
Rex Hunt said, "Hogg kicks, and it's THROUGH! It's a GOAL! Richmond wins by
THREE points! The Tiges have broken the drought - they've finally SHAKEN
the ARDEN STREET HOODOO!!
Regards,
Stuart McArthur
PS: Whatever you don't use I'll pass on to Jerry Seinfeld.
Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2001 09:48:39 +1000
From: Jac & Pete
Worst ever- 8.30am game on wintery saturday in 1959. Playing for McKinnon
Demons under 9s against arch rival Bentleigh Bulldogs.
COLD- it was so cold some of our mothers insisted we wearmittens.
FROST- never mind kicking the dew off the grass, this
was likeiceskating.
FOG- it was so foggy that the ball just suddenly
appeared out of the gloom. I was fullback and the opposition kicked 7
goals. I'm told their rover (one Greg Wells) kicked 6 of them, but I
didn't see him all day, only the ball flying over my head.
Jac & Peter Kilgour
Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2001 13:50:20 +1000
From: KyselaO
Simon
1983. It was an overcast and blustery day in June. We were rushed into
Victoria Park on the Blue Rattler (with the wood finish interior) from
Watsonia Station on the Hustrbridge line for our home game against
Melbourne. As captain, I was particularly keen for a win. I won the toss
and elected to kick to the Freeway End. In front of 31,000, the bell
sounded: Collingwood v Melbourne in the VFL match of the day.
As usual with 8 year old children, tactics and instructions were obsolete
once we were out on the field. We lined up in our given positions, but that
was the end of it. In the days where we played THE WHOLE LENGTH OF THE
GROUND (Little League is not as tough as it used to be, but it is "getting
faster"), once the ball was bounced, 36 kids (including 3 girls in our team)
swarmed into the centre, and proceeded to rugby scrum around the flanks of
Victoria Park for 15 minutes.
At half time, scores were locked at 0 0 0 apiece. We had the close one at
Victoria Park. Then with only a minute to go, a little bloke with a helmet
playing for Melbourne burst clear and fired on goal from 15 metres out.
Knowing there was no more than a minute, he displayed the makings of the
ultimate tactician and proceeded to dribble in a purposeful point, which was
actually worth 2 goals, as he knew the Pies wouldn't be able to move the
footy 160 metres to the other end of the ground in less than a minute, given
we'd failed to do so in the previous 14 minutes. We could hear Peter Landy
in the commentary box "That could be an important point".
The bell sounded, and it was 0 1 1 to 0 0 0, in what was a valuable 4 points
away for the Melbourne side, and a truly shocking specatcle for everyone at
the ground. I recall a member of the Collingwood cheer squad pleading with
me to king hit the centre half back from Melbourne in the second half, but I
only had eyes for the free Big M and pie back in the change rooms. The
crowd went beserk, and threw chips at the victorious Melbourne team.
Oliver Kysela
Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2001 18:11:35 +1000
From: Darren Brookes
Let me just set the scene, I was watching my brother play and it was the
under 10's at Kinglake Oval. For anybody who knows anything about
Kinglake realises that high in the mountain, the dew-kickers have the
hardest playing time at all. It was raining, foggy and about 2 below the
Roy Orbison (Big O)
The time, 8.30am on a Sunday August morning.
The 2 teams ran out, my brothers team was on top of the ladder. The rain
persisted, not angular rain but vertical rain. The ball was thrown up.
It took 6 minutes and a obvious dubious free-kick by the umpire who was
wearing tracksuits pants and a wooly-jumper, to get the ball out of the
clogmire that was the centre square. The rain continued to fall and the
fog hadn't still lifted Then another 6 minutes passed before the ball
reached 20 minutes out from the goal. The reason, the umpire in the
woolly jumper paid another free-kick. By this stage it didn't bother the
parents who were just glad to be sitting in the car with the heater on.
The free kick recipient kicked the ball and a little "Fraser Murphy
type" forward pocket marked the ball on the edge of the goal square. 3
minutes were left in the quarter. The FMT (Fraser Murphy Type) went back
to shoot for goal. He ran in and kicked onto the man on the mark. The
pack redeveloped. The woolly jumpered umpire than plucked out another
free-kick for what was believed to be holding the man. How he came out
with that decision with 8 kids rolling in the mud after the ball still
astounds me to this day. The parents even disapproved of the decision
and blasted their horn in frustration.
Then the siren went and this little kid was still only 6 metres out. He
looked like a JGT (John Gastev Type). After lining up for an eternity
for this kick he then, to everyones amazement decided to handball to the
team-mate next to him.
15 minutes, 3 ordinary free-kicks, rain, fog and some very cold holdens
later.
Score Kinglake 0.0.00 Yarrambat 0.0.00
Darren Brookes
Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2001 09:00:49
From: Terry Ledwich
Dear Simon
I remember the worst footy condions that I played in I'll never forget .I
represented the formly Southern Mallee football league
Terry Ledwich.
Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2001 19:03:59 +1000
From: "Salton, Jeff"
Hey Simon what have I done to offend you (apart from send in some crappy
entries)? You've read out worse entries than mine and pretended to
laugh. Let me know what graft and corruption you prefer so that I can
get back in the winner's circle. Love your work - Jeff from Kilsyth
Anyway, enough sucking up ...
A stinker of a game
When I was 14, I elected for the November draft in my local league and
was picked up by Bullen United U16s after playing four seasons with
Bulleen Templestowe (a veritable powerhouse in junior footy).
Bulleen United was a new team with a new home ground that looked a
picture. However, no-one mentioned that the reason it looked so lush and
green was that it was built on re-claimed land that was originally the
Bulleen tip.
On the first wet day of the season - one Sunday morning at 8.30am - we
dew-kickers arrived to see the groundcovered with huge puddles.
But it wasn’t until we ran out onto the ground that we noticed the
smell.
Boys from our team began to complain about the stench. Boys from the
other team made cutting remarks like:“ your ground stinks– you
all stink, too”.
We quickly retorted with barbs like:“ yeah, well so do you”.
The real trouble began when the umpire threw the ball up. It
wasn’t long before we experienced first-hand that the puddles had a
distinctive‘ septic’ smell about them. They sure didn’t
taste too good either if you were an‘ up and under’ player like
me. Soon no-one wanted to even bend down and pick the ball up out of the
stinking water. At the start of the second quarter, when the rain began
again, we opted to soccer the ball from one end to the other.
As a player, it was a shocker. As a spectator– far worse.
We kids got used to the smell after a couple of games. My mum didn't.
She complained to the coach that any cuts and scratches I got during wet
games at the ground took around 2-3 weeks to heal.
I got less game-time after that. Thanks mum!
Jeff from Kilsyth
Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2001 21:17:14 +0700
From: Wards in Thailand
Living in Bangkok and now that Aus TV and delayed footyhas notbeen on
the box sinceRound 1, we rely upon anything from home to keep the large
contingent of pigskin starved fanatics at bay.
The hottest ever game I've witnessed was a game here last year between
the home side, the Bangkok Tigers (resplendent in the black and gold) and
thevisiting Saigon Saints. The game was played on an elongated soccer
pitch with bamboo poles for goals. An ex ump had been flown in and did a
sterling job as the 15 a side teams scuffed the dust on the rock hard
turfin temperatures around the customary 35-38 degrees and 80%
humidity.
Even the ice-cubes in the beer were sweating.
Some excellent
skills displayed considering the hammering the boys had taken at the
hands of the local night clubs the evening before, eventually saw the
Tigers comfortable winners, the only downside being a dislocated shoulder
that no-one knew how to put back in.
Still he could hold the beer with
his other hand.
Marcus Ward
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001 09:00:01 +1000
From: "Anniss, Angela (VIC)"
WORST GAME
*1st Quarter : ( Saints pile on the goals ) "Oh its too easy "
& "C,mon
saints percentage"
& " Why do
you lot persist with that Chick
and
that Rawlings they'll never be
any good".
*2nd Quarter ( Hawks goal but still trail by 57 pts ) " Yeah! Cmon you
lot, Woo
Hoo, Yeah- we're still in it!!!"
*Half-Time ( Hawks looking better but still way behind )
" Lucky we're only
playing Hawthorn,
a good side would've punished us for
slacking off then ".
*3rd Quarter ( Hawks pile on the goals ) - No recorded comments, apparently
just
staring fiercely at Saints coaching box.
Anger building!
*3rd Quarter ( Hawks within 3 points as a Saints
(Time on) player goes down holding his head
after being struck high )
"Good, I
hope it hurt! Serves
yourself right, now you know how I feel".
*3 Quarter Time - I already know we're going to lose, I sneak down to the
bar to try and quench my disgust. But of course the Waverley Park bars have
shut 3 seconds after the æ time siren.
Steve Anniss
Date: 21 Jun 2001 19:33:05 MDT
From: michael hogg
as simon did not say it had to be a footbal game i am going to produce eltham
c grade v riverside c grade in the diamond valley c.a. from 99/00.
we batted first and as it was my first game i batted 10, made a couragous and
defient 8* while we made about 250. next week amid 5 or 6 rain showers we had
them for about 8/120 when the no.10 came in and decided to blast us all over
the ground and make a ton and give them a 2 wicket win. i came on late in the
day and my figures read (first game in c grade) 1 over, 0 maidens, 17 runs, 0
wickets. the over went like so...6,4,6,1,0,0. last 2 balls were dots so the
no.10 could stay on strike for next over!
worst game ever would have been when we played lalor in the under 13's, lost
by about 150 points and while playing full-back, kept the full-forward
goalless in probably the only ever performance noted because they kept kicking
it over my head.
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001 12:33:30 +1000
From: Ron.Collins@txu.com.au
The most boring footy match I ever went to (apart from the 1998
Grand Final). was the Demons V Brisbane Bears game at "The Thunderdome" - VFL park, in
1989. The game was so boring I cannot
even remember the correct year.
The Bears played a game of keepings-off, & even resorted to
circuit training, using approx. 250
handballs for the game (I believe it is still a record !) to keep
the footy away from the Mighty Demons.
The game was a perfect example of reverse herring-bone footy
initated by Geelong in the 80's.
& it even bored the Demons stickers of the 4 wheel drives. It
was a shocker.
Ron Collins
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001 13:41:49 +1000
From: Matt Cronin
I cannot decide which game is the worst I have seen. It is a toss up
between a game in which each team had 40 scoring shots or a game in which
full feminine nudity was observed. These two highlights are not something
that you would usually associate with bad games, however as always, there is
a story.
The first game was the 1972 grand final where although the Tigers kicked the
highest known score in a grand final, 22 18 150, they were still beaten by a
team whose name I still cannot utter. Being only 8 at the time and having
endured the replay of the drawn 2nd semi final, I left the "G" in floods of
tears and disillusionment, for all the "experts" said we would win and 8
year olds were so very trusting back then.
The second game was the 1982 grand final when again the same team inflicted
defeat on the Tigers. Once again the "experts" said we would win but alas
we didn't. The tigers had just got back on track after McConville had
savagely kicked Bruce Tempany's arm in two and were heading for victory,
when the naked woman appeared and the tigers lost the plot. Being 18 at the
time I didn't cry, however sadness was replaced by anger and it was lucky
that no supporter from the other team "got in my face" as I left the "G".
Mind you the game for the tigers could have been lost at the Thursday night
selection meeting when the tigers opted for the high paced, quick thinking
backline of - Strachan, Martello, Dunne.
Matt Cronin
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001 15:01:20 +1000
From: Adam Ellerton
Hi Coodabeens,
Us Collingwood supporters have seen some bad conditions at time but the
worst conditions I have experienced was after Lockett kicked his 1300th
goal and after the game being surrounded by Sydney supporters where the
precitpitation was exactly coming from the sky.
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001 17:06:36 +1000
From: "BULL,TRAVIS (HP-Australia,ex2)"
Entry By: The stop radio personalities getting there noggins on covers of
weekly periodicals action faction (Alias Travis Bull from Surrey Hills)
The worst conditions I ever experienced was one July night at Waverly
Fitzroy were playing the blues.
It was about 6 degrees but that wasn't the problem, the problem was it
wasn't raining when we arrived, nor was it raining when the players ran out.
The fun began when the siren rang to start the game. As soon as it sounded
down came the rain.
It rained all quarter till the siren for quarter time sounded then it
stopped. Then it started on the siren again.
I kid you not at the sound of the half time siren the rain stopped giving
the 36 young little boys near perfect conditions. What a game that was too,
I think Fitzroy little league beat Carlton 1 goal to 1 point.
You guessed it when the siren rang to start the 3rd quarter it rained again,
and unfortunately persisted until the final siren rang, when if by magic it
stopped.
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001 19:29:10 +1000
From: Andrew McKie
The worst conditions I ever played in was in a Year 7 or 8 match for St.
Joseph's Geelong (I am one of the few alumni from there who definitely
couldn't play) against St Bernard's Essendon (at St Bernards)in the mid
seventies. There was not a blade of grass visible as the whole ground was
under 6 inches of that thick blu-tack like Merri Creek loamy mud. I
recall getting a kick (one of the few), watching it lodge downfield end
up in the glue, and being so far in the clear (the only time ever) that I
was able to run down, gather it, and roost it another wobbly 15-20
metres. This game was particularly memorable for the fact that the ball
must have weighed some incedible amount late in the game as our goalsneak
forward pocket Warren Fitzgerald actually failed to make the distance
from a free kick paidinside the frontedge of the goal square; and for
the umpire, Br. Gerry Bennett (who was teaching at Joeys at the time-
strange coincidence) actually paying somewhere between 8-12 consecutive
fifteen metre penalties in a row as the St. Bernards coach became
increasingly apoplectic over a 'tiggy touchwood' paid to us; as each new
swear word was emitted, another 15 was paid.
I also remember coaching the Bacchus Marsh Under 12's in about 1987 to an
inglorious shellacking by North Ballarat at that wonderfully open,
unprotected NorthOval (in temperatures that could best be described as
'extremely cool'), heavy fog and persistent snow.
Andrew McKie
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001 18:55:49 +1000
From: Jeffrey Ferguson
I refer to your request for information regarding the worst ever football
conditions. There is of course only one incident that can ever be related
in regards to the extremes to which you infer.
I mean seriously Simon, I bring your mind back to the game held about 2
years ago when the Ravens were playing some inconsequential team in
Adelaide and the Chardonnay ran out at half time. HALF TIME!! I mean,
are we stooping so low as to be some 3rd world country like Melbourne!!
Are we? Thankfully someone in the coaching staff had the good sense not
to tell the Ravens until after the game, so anarchy was prevented and the
Ravens only lost by 87 points, but really, how are we expected to support
the lads under such appallingly uncivilised conditions.This is the sort
of thing I would expectof something organised by Mr Leonard, not in a
world leading cosmopolitan such as Adelaide.
I was fortunate enough to have several cases of our wonderful Chateau
Bediga Sparkling Port in the boot of my Jaguar and was able to get these
into the rooms just as the game finished it's final chukka, so the
situation was not a total human disaster, but really, humanity has rarley
come so close to retreating back to the dark ages.
Barry
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2001 12:54:15
From: Damien Joyce
Willaura U'16s V Dunkeld u'16's, Willaura Recreation Reserve, 1994.
The Saints hosted the Kangaroos at the "Sandpit", as I liked to call our
home ground.
Never before have I seen the quarter time siren so welcomed, nor have I seen
players so keen to go to the bench. As the quarter neared the end players
positioned themselves close to the bench, so that when the siren went they
could run to the bench and enjoy the warmth of it's corrogated iron
goodness. It was raining so hard you couldn't even tell it was raining,
just looked like fog, such was its consistency, and youcould definitley feel
it.
- raining (of course)
- lost by 15 goals
- Michael Gale kicked backwards
- Campbell punched Couch (got suspended for start of '96 season)
- queue for beer was miles long (mainly us Tigers supporters)
- had to walk miles back to the car in the rain
- haven't made the finals since!
On the comp. the worst game I can remember
was a certain Footscray Vs Carlton match at the western oval. The name
Mark Arceri should tell you all you need to know.
Off brief, but appropriate given the nearness of the ashes series, the
worst conditions I've played in was in this year's cricket grand final.
As usual it rained during finals, and I'd lost 8 tosses in a row coming
into the GF so I thought I was due for a win, WRONG! Lost toss on first
weekend's play, wet track, all out 66. Dry weather the following week,
pitch now an absolute road, opposition 7 for 270 when game ended. Don't
you just love wet conditions.
welike to think ourselves as alcohol enhanced footballers.
Last Monday week
Queen's Birthday weekend I went to watch my beloved DEEs take on Collingwood
As an MCC/MFC member ( does this now disqualify me from ever winning
anything) I usually sit in the members and watch the game. As I was with
several friends ( all Collingwood supporters) their children ( all
Collingwood Supporters) my two children ( all Collingwood Supporters)
1 Issue a Declaration of " So are WE" !!
Rupanyup ( currently on top of the Horsham District Ladder
After that any ground condition was deemed to be excellent!
Ballarat
Pascoe Vale
It was at Resevoir and it was woefull. the mud was green on the
clubrooms wing and our hole team was afraid to go near it because the
other team told us it was a surage leek. we lost the game and the
coach said we probably lost our handbags in the mud as well.
i think that or early this year at the mighty research park when it
rained heavly and consistantly for 4 quaters. standing at full forward
was giving me hypothermia as we were struggling.
Heatherdale Heaps . Heaps . Lots
Park Orchards 0 . 0 . 00
Yarra Valley Old Boys
From memory I think the voice-over went "CLAZY! Mr Tony - he go CLAZY!!"
No, sorry, it's a point."
Member of the 4 Game Club
Collingwood Liitle League Football Club
Armadale
St Kilda V Hawthorn 1999 Biggest comeback ever
As a saints supporter at that game, I witnessed the greatest example
of how a day can turn sour without warning. Quotes taken from me at various
times during the game, have been repeated to me ever since by my hawk
supporter mates present that day.
Chateau Bediga
Barossa Valley