Your 'Back to the Future' Moment

[wednesdaywarrior]

As part of a process of inflicting my own childhood on my children I possibly sank to a new low this morning by screening the critically un-acclaimed 'Back to the Future II'. Surprisingly they liked it as they did the first one. I asked them the question - if you could go back in time what time would you go to? To which my son replied 'Id go back in time to watch Nathan Buckley play for Collingwood.' Obviously I was filled with pride and a sensation that I am raising my kids right.

Then I got to thinking, when would I go? What would I do? Who would I like to see that I didn't see play? What would be my BTTF moment? I think the ultimate one would be to get down into the race in my little Michael j Fox outfit and accidentally trip or knock senseless Ted Hopkins as he was running out for the second half of the 1970 GF and then watch McKenna kick the icing on the cake goal. 2 birds with one stone, remedy the biggest Grand Final travesty in history and see the greatest player I haven't seen (along with John Greening in the same game).

Who would you go back in time to see or what moment would you try to change? What's your ultimate Back to the Future Moment?

 

[Apex36]

I'd go back and kneecap Jim O'Dea before he could ruin Greenings career.

It was before my time, but still burns that such a reportedly amazing player could have his career (and nearly his life) cut short by such a cowardly thuggish act.

 

[MooreTreloar]

Just from a historical view, 1927-1930 Premierships.

 

[TradeDraft]

Go To 1958 and 1990 GF's

 

[jjsmitty8]

Well, I was born in 91, so getting to see the 1990 flag would be cool. It'd be like me being my dad, he was a 23 year old in 1990 (but he barracks for Essendon the poor fella).

Thanks to the stories my late grandpa told me when I was growing up, I'd like to go back to '58 and see us protect our then 30 year record by defeating Melbourne!

 

[itsrobbiet]

I would go back to 77 and tell Phil Carmen to keep his elbow down.

 

[Knightmare]

If we're talking just Collingwood given I was around for the Nathan Buckley era (though I'd happily watch more of the greatest footballer to play our game) I'd go back to the 1927-1930 years. It won't be the same quality of game but none the less it's a level of winning that has never again occurred and naturally would be interesting to see the greats of the day - The Coventry's and the Collier's among others.

If you're talking sporting history overall I'd love to go back to see Wilt Chamberlain's 100 point game (NBA - basketball) during the 1962/1963 season. Just seeing the greatest ever physical specimen in the history of all sports at the height of his powers would really be something.

 

[BlackWhiteBlood]

General sporting terms has to be going back to '32-33 series Ashes (bodyline). Watching one the most infamous series in history would be pretty special.

In football term go back to the '02 prelim have have a quite word in Jason Cloke's ear about being careful when going to punch the ball when Smart is going for a mark.

 

[MagpieBat]

2002 Grand Final. I take a friend (or Doc Brown?) and we switch places with one of the field umpires and the goal umpire who was at our end in that final quarter.

The result? Chris Tarrant receives a free kick in front of goal after being blatantly held by Darryl White. And of course, Anthony Rocca's goal that wasn't paid actually is paid this time. Probably have to make sure Wakelin doesn't get pinged for a tiggy-touch on Lynch while we're there as well...

True, we probably fade out of existence after our meddling (we went back in time to correct the wrong umpiring decisions in the 2002 GF that are not wrong umpiring decisions because we corrected them, thus removing our reason to go back in time and correct them!), but Paul Licuria's tears become ones of joy instead of heartbreak, Nathan Buckley holds up the premiership cup that he and the other 21 blokes that day so richly deserved and 2002 goes down alongside 1958 as the greatest premiership in the history of the club.

And of course, 1 less flag for Brisbane...

 

[Robroy22]

Having already "been around for most of these"....Wilt Chamberlain the greatest ever physical specimen....hmmm...I think Ali might just have him covered as the most impressive and influential sportsman of our time. Footy wise...it would be lovely to be able to go back and warn players "Des Healy look out for Bluey Adams running off the bench"..."Don't turn your back on him, Johnny Greening" ..."Tuddy...leave it for Pete".... all those things are just parts of what has made our game so unpredictable and so tough for so many years. To watch it is hard enough, to play it is simply brutal.

But if I had to go back I'd settle on watching "the machine" go through its paces. My dear old mum used to reminisce about two players she loved from the era just following the 1927-1930 dominance because remember we won flags again in '35 &'36 (so six flags in a 9 year period under McHale). Jack Regan "the prince of fullbacks" was a favourite of hers. He could mark like Todd and kick the ball to the centre of Victoria Park without ever raising a sweat or getting a hair out of place she would say. Whilst other FB's of the day relied on "bashing their opponents" Regan simply matched and then bettered them with skill. (I did not see anyone like Regan until Bob Murray from StKilda and then Pert and Southby).
Her other favourite from the mid thirties was Marcus Whelan. A stylish centreman Whelan was apparently extraordinarily handsome and his physique and demeanor on the field left the women of the day swooning! (I'm thinking Geoff Raines perhaps?)

So...If I got a chance to return....to go back to the future...I'd pick a mid 1930's home game at Vicci Park with the sun shining and us beating the blues comprehensively.

If I had a time machine though I'd go back to 1981 to the Bells Comp in HUGE 6-7m waves. Best surf at Bells ever!!

 

[Apex36]

If we're talking just Collingwood given I was around for the Nathan Buckley era (though I'd happily watch more of the greatest footballer to play our game) I'd go back to the 1927-1930 years. It won't be the same quality of game but none the less it's a level of winning that has never again occurred and naturally would be interesting to see the greats of the day - The Coventry's and the Collier's among others.

If you're talking sporting history overall I'd love to go back to see Wilt Chamberlain's 100 point game (NBA - basketball) during the 1962/1963 season. Just seeing the greatest ever physical specimen in the history of all sports at the height of his powers would really be something.

In the history of all sports??

That's a very large call to make...

 

[Bard]

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away....

 

[ipswichpies]

Just wish Todd And Fothergill had stayed at the club we would have won a flag or 2 between 36 and 53 and yes 58 would have been fantastic to watch the same as port when they stopped those b------ Lions good days.

 

[Markfs]

In the history of all sports??

That's a very large call to make...

evidently one of wilt's many conquests....

 

[Kilmo]

I'd go back and see Chris Tarrant do this.

 

[ottoman]

Everyone seems to forget the Don. No player has even got close to his average. It is him 10 flemington straights and then the rest.

 

[Ricky90]

Everyone seems to forget the Don. No player has even got close to his average. It is him 10 flemington straights and then the rest.

Bradman suffers (in terms of world wide recognition) because Cricket isn't played in America. It's a shame though!

 

[wednesdaywarrior]

My brother is an NBA/lakers tragic - he'd agree with all that Chamberlain stuff.

I am a tennis fan. If talking tennis the best games ever would be McEnroe/Borg 1980 Wimbledon, Cash/Pernfors 1984 Davis Cup Final, Federer/Nadal Wimbledon and Aus Final. But if I was to go back in time I'd like to have seen Laver or Hoad at their best.

 

[wednesdaywarrior]

Bradman suffers (in terms of world wide recognition) because Cricket isn't played in America. It's a shame though!

And Walter Lindrum (if you happen to consider billboards a sport)

 

[Vicky Park]

I'm with those who'd like to return to Victoria Park during the era of The Machine, when we dominated the competition for four flags in a row. That was in the Depression, and my family lived in Collingwood and Abbotsford during those hard years. The joy that our successful club brought to those downtrodden communities, in contrast to their difficult day to day living, is something most of us will never experience. Buts its one of the main reasons I love the Pies. We stood for something then, and we still do.

 

[rustyg70]

Go back to 1990 and stop Darren Milane from driving on that fateful night.

 

[swiftdog]

Everyone seems to forget the Don. No player has even got close to his average. It is him 10 flemington straights and then the rest.

Interesting little article, basically cutting up the data in the "greatest of all time" debate that makes a pretty strong argument for the Don.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/364221-the-most-unbreakable-sporting-mark

 

[Robroy22]

Go back to 1990 and stop Darren Milane from driving on that fateful night.

I take your point but it was 1991 when Darren Millane had his accident.

 

[wednesdaywarrior]

To pull it back to footy for a minute though, I've often thought, perhaps in a similar vein to the Russell/Chamberlain discussion, that Buckley was a better player than Hird and Voss. It's a contentious argument to put with non-Pie fans cause most of them just hate Bucks. But I would argue that Bucks played to a consistent level in relatively poor teams for most of his career while the other two were always rubbing shoulders with platoons of other champion players, especially Voss.

 

[Lockyer24]

I'd happily go back and watch the 2010 prelim again with my family.

Or one of the 2006-2007sh games where we had all our talented players of the last decade in the one side but at different career phases.