Your favourite Preliminary Final.

[Leon]

I love Preliminary Final weekend, it’s the best weekend of the year. Christmas come early. As a Crows supporter obviously 97 is up there but as a neutral I’d have to say Hawthorn v Melb 87.

Obviously 97 vs Dogs


But the GOAT Prelim is 99 Blues Dons

Disagree strongly, 1997 Prelim was a horrendous game

 

[Duskfire]

Bulldogs vs GWS is probably my favourite game ever. High skills, tight, contested, momentum swings, etc etc. Collingwood vs Hawthorn in 2011 was great as well.

I have a soft spot for Brisbane vs Geelong in 2004. Both prelims that year were pretty epic really. I mostly live it because it was the emergence of Geelongs youngsters.

 

[Roobs321]

'96 - first prelim I vividly remember seeing, parents Bloods fans
'97 - insane finish
'99 - entire game was decent, last quarter insane
'13 - end of Kennett curse, last quarter kind of reminds me of Swans-Saints '05
'16 - as a big spruiker of that rivalry, the game delivered big-time

Personally, the Eagles 2nd half in '06 and 1st half in '18 is vintage stuff for the club vault. Last prelim weekend was obviously a dream come true for us in both matches.

I missed '07, and only saw bits of '04 during a party night.

 

[MC Extra Dollop]

2009 as a Geelong supporter. Was a bit worried about the Pies and they'd been a bogey team, but we absolutely destroyed them. Probably my favourite Geelong premiership with the benefit of hindsight, as the top four (with St Kilda, Collingwood and the Bulldogs) was absolutely stacked that year, from a biased perspective, as stacked as the league has ever been.

Objectively, 1987 (Haw v Mel), 1991 (WC v Gee), 1993 (Ess v Ade), 1994 (Gee v NM), 1996 (Syd v Ess), 1999 (Car v Ess), 2004 (PA v StK and BL v Gee), 2007 (Gee v Col), 2009 (StK v WB), 2011 (Col v Haw), 2012 (Haw v Ade), 2013 (Haw v Gee), 2014 (Haw v PA) and 2016 (WB v GWS) have been some classic nailbiters (what a crazy run from 2011-14 for Hawthorn).

Feels like we're probably due for a classic or two this weekend; there's only been one close one from the last eight (although there's been a couple of entertaining upsets in that time).

 

[Cuzz09]

Surprised this one took awhile to get mentioned - with Bombers down by 7 goals at half time and The Crows supporters were bookin their trip back to Melbourne for the GF... then all of a sudden it went pear shaped with Timmy Watson on fire.

I was at that game.

3rd qtr was probably the loudest Ive heard the G.

Darren Bewick went mental

On SM-G925I using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Boris the Contradiction]

'07 vs Pies.

As a Pies man it was hard to take, but it was a great game of footy.

For me it was the Pies Hawks prelim in '11. Objectively it was a sensational game, but the noise of the crowd in the last quarter was like nothing I've ever heard before or since.

The Buddy goal, the Cloke mark and goal, the Shoenmakers dropped mark, "Luuuuke Baaaaal", Malthouse nearly collapsing at the end. The theater of it and the atmosphere were ridiculous.

There were grown men hugging perfect strangers in the crowd. So stressful, but I loved it.

 

[hoianbulldog]

View attachment 746850

Ouch

 

[hoianbulldog]

View attachment 746896

Ouch

 

[The King!]

2005 saints swans was awesome to be there

saints fans were so loud when winning, made a great atmosphere

 

[radiojake]

Ouch

If the Crows didn't s**t the bed in 2017, it would have been this pic


but they did s**t the bed, so it stays with Libba - soz

 

[Jcpdragonx]

Easily watching Richmond piss away their cakewalk season last year. 22 straight home games gone in a quarter, couldn’t believe it

 

[Barham to Kink]

Four time premiership player Wayne Johnston never played in a Preliminary Final.

Interesting. Was there a prelim each year he played in the GF? Was he injured and brought back for each GF?

 

[Blackhawk42]

This isn't the best one, but i've noticed it missing from this thread. Underrated entry.

 

[radiojake]

Interesting. Was there a prelim each year he played in the GF? Was he injured and brought back for each GF?

I'm guessing it was the Final 5 where the 2nd Semi Final winner went straight to the GF and there was only 1 prelim each year

 

[Duskfire]

Easily watching Richmond piss away their cakewalk season last year. 22 straight home games gone in a quarter, couldn’t believe it

Second biggest “what the” after Geelong in 2008. I couldn’t believe it when they lost, it changed everything. They looked to be absolutely certainties, which goes to show there is no such thing really.

 

[Boris the Contradiction]

fu** we gave it our all that night.

Incredibly proud of our team that year. The Cats won their other two finals by over fifteen goals so it said a lot for our tenacity that we were one kick away on the final siren

Doing it the week after enduring an extra time thriller against WC in Perth, against a monumental Cats side with the break the week before as well.

It was a phenomenal effort. Shaw, Swan, Clement had big big games. Cloke was a colossus with 13 Marks and 3 goals. Nobody knew who the hell Dane Swan was then, but what a year he had. We knew what was coming.

Ottens mauled Bryan and Richards to never seen before levels. Was probably the difference.

 

[Duskfire]

Doing it the week after enduring an extra time thriller against WC in Perth, against a monumental Cats side with the break the week before as well.

It was a phenomenal effort. Shaw, Swan, Clement had big big games. Cloke was a colossus with 13 Marks. Nobody knew who the hell Dane Swan was then, but what a year he had. We knew what was coming.

Ottens mauled Bryan and Richards's to never seen before levels. Was probably the difference.

Ablett went nuts in that last quarter as well. I still remember that goal he kicked; was just monsterous and came out of nowhere.

It was the beginning of that little rivalry those two teams had. Bumped into each other many times!

 

[Boris the Contradiction]

Ablett went nuts in that last quarter as well. I still remember that goal he kicked; was just monsterous and came out of nowhere.

It was the beginning of that little rivalry those two teams had. Bumped into each other many times!

Yea he had a big one. Bartel and Stevie J too from memory? Didak did some sexy stuff that game as well. He liked playing the Cats.

 

[Spider Eater]

Syd V Ess in 96 should get a mention.

 

[raskolnikov]

I preferred the one a year later.

 

[PonsfordMagpie]

2018 = Richmond vs Collingwood

Neutral:
- 1999 = Essendon vs Carlton
- 2006 = Adelaide vs West Coast
- 2014 = Hawthorn vs Port Adelaide
- 2016 = GWS vs Western Bulldogs

 

[brad]

Definitely 2000 Preliminary Final when Essendon beat Carlton by more than a measly point and then went on to demolish the Dees in the GF by 10 goals. Greatest season ever!

 

[Elmer_Judd]

1994 (Cats v North) and 1999 (Dona v Blues) are the two standouts for me.

 

[Glenhope]

1987 Melb v Haw. Buckenara's goal after the siren.

 

[footyfan1978]

Interesting. Was there a prelim each year he played in the GF? Was he injured and brought back for each GF?

Of course there was a prelim each year but three of those years we made grand final via the second semi-final match of 1 v 2 where winner goes straight through to grand final. The only time we lost that second semi-final he was not playing as he was suspended for middle 2 weeks of finals so although we had to make it via prelim final win in week three he was suspended and came back for the 1982 grand final , which was one of those four grand finals we won that he played in.