Epic damn day partyUntil I witnessed the birth of my first son in 2001, the 1990 G.F. was easily the best day of my life. I originally posted my 1990 story in the "sneaking into the grandfinal" thread. Here it is again.
It was October 1990, I was 17 and Collingwood were playing in the Grand Final. I didn't have a ticket but I knew I was going to that game. On the Thursday morning I caught a train from Blackheath to Sydney, then a flight to Melbourne and a train to Upper Ferntree Gully. I gave Granny & Gramps a big hug, smashed some tea n' scones, declared my intentions to them and hightailed it out of there. Within a couple of hours I was at Victoria Park in a state of absolute bliss, amongst a huge Magpie army watching the final training session.
When Saturday rolled around I still didn't have a ticket but with $120 cash in my pocket there was no doubt in my mind I would be sitting inside the MCG by 2PM.
I left Upper Ferntree Gully that morning by train and was walking and watching with intent outside the Hallowed Ground by about 9.30-10.00am. After about an hour and a half I had nothing, not even a sniff of a ticket, my optimism had evaporated and a feeling of panic was starting to set in. Then it came like music to my ears, the sound I was waiting for, the call of the scalper not too loud but not too soft.... a bit like a dog whistle "tickets! anyone want to buy a ticket?". The negotiation lasted about ten seconds: I offered him $60, he demanded $80, it was a no brainer! The ticket was for "STANDING ROOM ONLY" and had a price of $14 on it.
The guy at the gate liked the look of my ticket and let me straight in. The MCG was virtually empty at this point, from memory I think it was around 11.00 to 11.30am and many of the guards at the gates between the Grandstands either weren't there or weren't paying attention. So like a ninja I explored all the potential vantage points until I found myself sitting on an empty bench only a couple of rows back from the font of the first tier level right above the goal posts.
When the umpire bounced the ball at the start of play I was clenching on to the end of that bench with less than half an arse cheek only thanks to the mercy of a group of four of five men who must have walked straight out of the bar 2 minutes before play and claimed my spot on the bench. But 4 odd inches was all I needed to enjoy the biggest game of my life. I was nervous when Paul Salmon booted the first two goals of the match right below me, shocked to see Gavin Brown lying on the ground motionless in the middle of the brawl at quarter time and ecstatic when Daicos threaded his first goal through at the opposite end of the ground.
After the final siren I worked my way down to the seats on ground level below and mingled with the Collingwood Cheer Squad. They were crying and I cried with them. What a great day!
There were reports on the news after the game that a some people had been arrested for forging and selling grand final tickets and that several of the fake tickets had been sold on the day. I've always suspected that the ticket I bought was a dodgy one but I guess we'll never know.
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