Opinion Most memorable experiences (good & bad) at VFL/AFL grounds

Spazz Cat

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Jun 10, 2013
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As a kid, i wasn't able to go to many Cats' games- but listened very intently to 3GL broadcasts every week on the wireless or trans ;) (lol- BF just changed 'trann-y' to 'trans woman' :D)

When my older sister was old enough, she took me to a couple of Cats' games at home- not that I remember anything about the games at all, I was just so excited about being there! But I do remember an old lady who sat over near the players' benches on the boundary and, if she didn't like someone (i.e. opposition supporters), she would give them a poke with her umbrella. I swear I probably watched more of her than the game- she was hilarious!

Then again, as a youngster, my sister took me to a game at Windy Hill- it poured with rain and everyone had their umbrellas out so, of course, I couldn't see anything (being only about 4' nothing!) so I amused myself by dripping rain off my umbrella down the necks of the people who had their umbrellas up in front of me, obscuring my view. If anyone here came home soaked down the back of the neck that day, I apologise.... but I did try and aim for Bombers supporters.

And another memory- this isn't VFL but it is VFL-related- I was at the game when John Scarlett had his eye gouged, playing in the VFA. I had no idea of the extent of his injury at the time but do recall hearing afterward that he had hours of microsurgery to repair a torn tear duct. I think we played Coburg that day- in a GF, from memory (but it's very very hazy) :(
Yep was Coburg. I wasn't born then but my dad was there and has told me about it. A lot of people blamed Phil Cleary but it wasn't him. Twas someone else.
I never saw a game at Windy Hill but I live not too far from there now. I've driven around it a couple of times. It's hard to believe the Bombers used to play all there home games there.
 

Rankin_1925

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I know you are asking boob.
But reserves game?

I was at the tunnel until 6.
Woke up at 2.

lol

So no idea.
I assume you were shooing Barnesy out of the door of the Tunnel so he would get home at a reasonable hour? If the Cats were playing a home game, you were almost certain to see Barnesy in the Lyric on a Friday night, if we were playing in Melbourne it was the Tunnel. His ability to get up for a game after a night on the tiles puts the intestinal fortitude of today's 'gut runners' to shame :D
 

Spazz Cat

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Jun 10, 2013
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Also Teriyakicat, I remember when 3GL first turned into Krock cause I went to my first game at KP and there was a giant Kangaroo playing a guitar out the front and I thought it was awesome. Apart from that all I can remember is that it was against StKilda and we lost. I went to so many games there growing up and I used to be able to get in for kids prices all through my teenage years even though I was growing a really dodgy goatee. Lots of girls used to get fully tarted up and we could sneak in alcohol in our jackets. It was the place to be about every third week.
 
Jul 9, 2013
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The very first footy game that I can remember going to in the mid 80's, being knee high to a grasshopper. Before the first bounce guys were throwing streamers on to the field, after every goal kicked there was hundreds of pages of cut up "Yellow Pages" and "White Pages" hurled in to the air. It was loud, fun, crazy. I highly doubt anything ever topping that. Will never forget it.
 
Jul 3, 2008
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Just under pussy's bow.
AFL Club
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Memorable times at the footy?

* meeting Jacko in the MCG public toilets a few hours before a game
* childhood disbelief at the size of the stud-holes left in the goal-square mud after a game when getting to jump the fence at the Junction or Lakeside Ovals
* being in a group of around 30 kids who used as footy target practice the back of the Channel 7 commentary box during Army Reserve games at Lakeside Oval, in the hope of getting Don Scott really pissed off
* filling in the Doug Wade stats book, unable to keep Larry Donahue's goal total in the small box
* standing right behind the goals, marvelling at Gary Malarkey's drop punts, but secretly hoping for one of those torps
 
Mar 6, 2014
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Yep was Coburg. I wasn't born then but my dad was there and has told me about it. A lot of people blamed Phil Cleary but it wasn't him. Twas someone else.
I never saw a game at Windy Hill but I live not too far from there now. I've driven around it a couple of times. It's hard to believe the Bombers used to play all there home games there.

Also Teriyakicat, I remember when 3GL first turned into Krock cause I went to my first game at KP and there was a giant Kangaroo playing a guitar out the front and I thought it was awesome. Apart from that all I can remember is that it was against StKilda and we lost. I went to so many games there growing up and I used to be able to get in for kids prices all through my teenage years even though I was growing a really dodgy goatee. Lots of girls used to get fully tarted up and we could sneak in alcohol in our jackets. It was the place to be about every third week.

Haha- your goatee must've been REALLY REALLY dodgy!! Perhaps they felt sorry for you? ;)

Here's a piece I found re Scarlett- written by Phil Cleary in 2011: http://philclearyforbrunswick.tumblr.com/post/5822600292

"I don’t recall seeing the fading photo from the 1979 grand final wedged into a window frame alongside the lockers that day.

How could a photo of such significance be left there to fade away, I thought when I spotted it on Saturday. Could anyone imagine a photo of Bob Davis in his glory days being placed in a window frame at Skilled Stadium? In front of the pack in the photo is Trevor Price, one of the most feared men to have ever worn a Coburg jumper. A straight-ahead triple premiership defender with power-laden shoulders characteristic of a working man, Price had tangled with John Scarlett – father of Cat, Matthew – during a fiery third quarter. Scarlett was left with a torn tear duct. Price says it was an accident. It was not a great moment in a grand final that would become a VFA classic. In front of 20,000 people we won with the last two goals of the match.

At the far right of the photo, feet planted in expectation, is the masterful goal kicker Joe Radojevic. In the air attempting to spoil is Brad Nimmo, who went on to captain the ‘88/89 premiership sides. Similar in style to Port’s Patrick Rose, in 158 games Radojevic amassed 723 goals. Rose is a great VFA/VFL player. However Radojevic, with beautiful soft hands and a searing left foot, was better. He was a VFA phenomenon."

And this looks like the incident involving Scarlett and Price (uploaded by Phil Cleary):
 

Spazz Cat

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Jun 10, 2013
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Haha- your goatee must've been REALLY REALLY dodgy!! Perhaps they felt sorry for you? ;)

Here's a piece I found re Scarlett- written by Phil Cleary in 2011: http://philclearyforbrunswick.tumblr.com/post/5822600292

"I don’t recall seeing the fading photo from the 1979 grand final wedged into a window frame alongside the lockers that day.

How could a photo of such significance be left there to fade away, I thought when I spotted it on Saturday. Could anyone imagine a photo of Bob Davis in his glory days being placed in a window frame at Skilled Stadium? In front of the pack in the photo is Trevor Price, one of the most feared men to have ever worn a Coburg jumper. A straight-ahead triple premiership defender with power-laden shoulders characteristic of a working man, Price had tangled with John Scarlett – father of Cat, Matthew – during a fiery third quarter. Scarlett was left with a torn tear duct. Price says it was an accident. It was not a great moment in a grand final that would become a VFA classic. In front of 20,000 people we won with the last two goals of the match.

At the far right of the photo, feet planted in expectation, is the masterful goal kicker Joe Radojevic. In the air attempting to spoil is Brad Nimmo, who went on to captain the ‘88/89 premiership sides. Similar in style to Port’s Patrick Rose, in 158 games Radojevic amassed 723 goals. Rose is a great VFA/VFL player. However Radojevic, with beautiful soft hands and a searing left foot, was better. He was a VFA phenomenon."

And this looks like the incident involving Scarlett and Price (uploaded by Phil Cleary):

Cheers for that. Great stuff. I've always been interested in the VFA as 2 of my uncles played. I also really like Phil Cleary and am checking out a fair bit of his tumblr after clicking on the link you posted. It's pretty interesting.
 
Middlemiss was one of those players that looked like he could be anything but never delivered.
I have a vague memory that he kicked a heap at the lake side oval one day. I'll go look.
He did kick a 7 one game, and in fact, his figures look better than my memory of him; I must be affected by some misses he had from close range, like Peter Johnson
 
That was the game Stew mentioned above.
Torrential rain.
You left at the wrong time. North didn't score after half time and we kicked 8 straight. We smashed them.
No , different game entirely; we left at 1/2 time, and listening to the game on the way home, we hardly scored. Sorry, it was possibly this millennium, Carey did play.
I went to the game Sttew mentioned, was quite close to where he was that day. That was in the day of Ian Nankervis.
Both NM games though, and wet.
 
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G0d_

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... His ability to get up for a game after a night on the tiles puts the intestinal fortitude of today's 'gut runners' to shame :D

His ability to get up for a game was, I was informed by reliable sources, not due to organic chemistry.
 

Goggin Our Best

Norm Smith Medallist
May 23, 2011
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Memorable times at the footy?

* meeting Jacko in the MCG public toilets a few hours before a game
* , marvelling at Gary Malarkey's drop punts, but secretly hoping for one of those torps


Went to Geel v Hawthorn game out at Waverley in the late 70s - 2 teams out of the finals( Cats lost by a point after leading by 5 goals - but that was Geelong back then)

Malarkey in the 3rd qtr - kicking in from fullback- one 70 metre torpedo bomb after another - it was that good - you could sit and watch it all day- Jack Dyer - who i was listening to on 3KZ - as i was watching the game - was saying - Oh Malarkey puts the boot right through it- vintage stuff from Captain Blood

I know alot of supporters rave about Scarlet - but i still think Malarkey was a better Geelong full back - his efforts on full forwards like Michael Roach and Quinlan - one out - not having a 3rd bloke coming in to help was top notch - and as you say - he was a beautiful kick
 
I've been lucky in the sense of being in the right place at the right time with a few memorable Cats moments;

-was on holidays on the Gold Coast, so went along to Carrara when we played Brisbane in the record breaking highest score game. Was a true goal-fest, and so memorable for a Cats supporter
-was sitting a few metres from where Riccardi took his kick for goal in the after the siren win against the Blues in 2002 (?). GF's aside, I don't remember being that excited at a game (we were pretty average back then ;))
-my favourite memory was watching a pre-season game at KP, when GAS quietly sat next to me to watch GAJ play. After a good half hour of feeling I may pass out, I was able to bumble a few sentences to him (not that I can remember any of it!). He was polite, softly spoken and really proud of GAJ :thumbsu:
 

vinum coupe

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I assume you were shooing Barnesy out of the door of the Tunnel so he would get home at a reasonable hour? If the Cats were playing a home game, you were almost certain to see Barnesy in the Lyric on a Friday night, if we were playing in Melbourne it was the Tunnel. His ability to get up for a game after a night on the tiles puts the intestinal fortitude of today's 'gut runners' to shame :D
I have been out on the grog with him. I honestly can't remember when or where.
I have a feeling it was at a bbq and then the grand in Essendon.

Use to see pants at the tunnel all the time.
 

vinum coupe

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I know alot of supporters rave about Scarlet - but i still think Malarkey was a better Geelong full back - his efforts on full forwards like Michael Roach and Quinlan - one out - not having a 3rd bloke coming in to help was top notch - and as you say - he was a beautiful kick

No way.
Malarkey definitely stood out back then. He was our saving grace.
 
Mar 6, 2014
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I've been lucky in the sense of being in the right place at the right time with a few memorable Cats moments;

-was on holidays on the Gold Coast, so went along to Carrara when we played Brisbane in the record breaking highest score game. Was a true goal-fest, and so memorable for a Cats supporter
-was sitting a few metres from where Riccardi took his kick for goal in the after the siren win against the Blues in 2002 (?). GF's aside, I don't remember being that excited at a game (we were pretty average back then ;))
-my favourite memory was watching a pre-season game at KP, when GAS quietly sat next to me to watch GAJ play. After a good half hour of feeling I may pass out, I was able to bumble a few sentences to him (not that I can remember any of it!). He was polite, softly spoken and really proud of GAJ :thumbsu:
I'm sure that GAS would've been thinking that you were the ideal supporter to be sitting next to, catgal- many people would've been all over him like a rash but you would've respected his privacy and left him alone.
 
Aug 2, 2012
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Yep was Coburg. I wasn't born then but my dad was there and has told me about it. A lot of people blamed Phil Cleary but it wasn't him. Twas someone else.

It was tough guy Trevor Price, they had a 2-man war. It was widely expected before the game because Price was expected to retire following the game.

I actually went to a Geelong-North game at Coburg.
It was Sam Kekovich's 1st game after a protracted fight with Carlton and another battle to get his clearance from the bush. At the opening bounce he sharked the ball, ran around the back of the pack, headed for goals with one bounce, and slammed it straight through the middle with a 60-metre drop kick.
I lost my wallet, money, train ticket and all, and had to hitch-hike all the way to Heidelberg Station without a single b lift.
But geez, he was good to watch at his best.
 
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