Fitzroy's Fabulous Century: The 100 Greatest Victories, 1897-1996

FitzroyPete

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I've kept this pretty quiet, but I've just finished writing Fitzroy's Fabulous Century: The 100 Greatest Victories, 1897-1996.
The cover page - featuring the great Bernie "Superboot" Quinlan - should be attached to this post.
My choice of Fitzroy's Top 100 is subjective given the Roys won 869 games between 1897 and 1996.
I've ranked the Top 100 into four quarters (100-76, 75-51, 50-26, 25-1) in a countdown from No.100 to No.1.
I'm waiting for my website to be updated, but more details of the book are available at www.fitzroypete.com.au.
Including the Introduction, Acknowledgements and a few "fillers", the book comprises 388 pages and costs $35.
However, for any BigFooty poster that buys a copy, I'll include a complimentary copy of my first major book, Dreamer, Drifter, Drunk.
I'm also giving posters a chance to win a free copy.
Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to select those victories that I've rated as Fitzroy's Top 10 wins.
To make things a bit easier for you, I listed the "final quarter" (wins 25-1) in chronological order below.

1909: Round 13 v South Melbourne (Lake Oval), 1913: Grand Final v St Kilda (MCG), 1919: Round 16 v Melbourne (Brunswick St), 1920: Round 16 v Essendon (East Melbourne), 1922: Grand Final v Collingwood (MCG), 1928: Round 11 v North Melbourne (Arden St), 1944: Grand Final v Richmond (Junction), 1958: Round 11 v Melbourne (Brunswick St), 1963: Round 10 v Geelong (Brunswick St), 1965: Round 2 v Footscray (Western Oval), 1970: Round 1 v Richmond (MCG), 1971: Round 21 v Carlton (Junction), 1978: Round 4 v South Melbourne (Junction), 1979: Round 17 v Melbourne (Waverley), 1983: Round 13 v North Melbourne (Junction), 1983: Round 21 v Collingwood (Junction), 1984: Round 22 v St Kilda (Junction), 1986: Elimination Final v Essendon (Waverley), 1986: First Semi-Final v Sydney (MCG), 1989: Round 18 v Melbourne (Princes Park), 1991: Round 24 v West Coast (Princes Park), 1992: Round 11 v Collingwood (Princes Park), 1993: Round 1 v Carlton (Princes Park). 1995: Round 8 v Adelaide (Football Park), 1996: Round 8 v Fremantle (Western Oval)

The AFL Tables website, which was of invaluable assistance during my research, might assist you in your selection.


For each answer provided, I'll let the poster know how many of their choices are in the Top 10 without divulging which ones are correct.
To give everybody a chance of winning, I'll initially restrict each poster to one answer per day.
In the event of a tie, I'll obviously give each winner a book.
So, good luck in selecting the Top 10 Fitzroy winners (remember, I just want the 10 & not the final order - that will be provided at the finish).
 

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Aug 27, 2014
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there are no other teams worthy
Hawthorn won premiership in 1983 and in 1984 after 16 rounds, Fitzroy had only won 5 games for the season and playing reigning premier Hawthorn that were on top of the ladder. Fitzroy beat them and actually went on to make the finals, incredibly.
Surprised the round 17 win over Hawthorn is not listed.

In any case, great effort to create such a project in form of a book.
If at all possible I would hope you could include that game in it before it goes to print.
 

FitzroyPete

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Hawthorn won premiership in 1983 and in 1984 after 16 rounds, Fitzroy had only won 5 games for the season and playing reigning premier Hawthorn that were on top of the ladder. Fitzroy beat them and actually went on to make the finals, incredibly.
Surprised the round 17 win over Hawthorn is not listed.

In any case, great effort to create such a project in form of a book.
If at all possible I would hope you could include that game in it before it goes to print.

Thanks for your kind words, footyfan78.
I did consider the 1984 Round 17 Fitzroy-Hawthorn game that you mentioned, but it just missed the cut and the book has already been printed.
The Roys had the happy knack of beating the Hawks when they were flying high (1975, 1978, 1984 and 1986 spring to mind), but I had to be pretty ruthless to get a good cross-section of victories over the 100 years.
 
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Mobbs, I'm not sure how to send you a PM, but if you can contact me that would be great.
I've given you a mention in the book.
I'll send a PM. It's only 2 in the morning! What could possibly go wrong :D

And my pick is 1. Rd 18, 1989. 2. Rd 18, 1989. 3. Rd 18, 1989. etc etc etc :)))))
 

FitzroyPete

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I thought that would be your favourite game, Mobbs, and you and the Lynch Mob get a mention at the start of my description of that memorable encounter.
 

FitzroyPete

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Thanks for your kind words, Broken, the book was fun to research and write.
I agonised over the choice of some Fitzroy victories in preference to others.
Some of my choices were on the quirky side, both in terms of obscure statistics and the colourful style of match reports from the early days.
I've attached the Fitzroy-St Kilda match from Round 22, 1984, being the last VFL/AFL game at the Junction Oval that saw the Lions make a late entry into the five and Bernie Quinlan bring up his second successive century of goals.
 

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FitzroyPete

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In order to get a few entries in "List the Top 10", I've "culled" wins 21-25 (including Mobbs' favourite, Round 18, 1989).
So, of the 20 Fitzroy victories listed below, you have to nominate what you think my Top 10 were in Fitzroy's Fabulous Century: The 100 Greatest Victories, 1897-1996.
For each entry, I'll tell you how many of the 10 you've correctly chosen (but won't say which ones you've got correct).
I'll award a book to the first person to choose nine of the 10 and then another book to whoever is first to name all of the Top 10.
You don't need to put them in order.
This AFL Tables link might be useful.

1913: Grand Final v St Kilda (MCG), 1922: Grand Final v Collingwood (MCG), 1928: Round 11 v North Melbourne (Arden St), 1944: Grand Final v Richmond (Junction), 1958: Round 11 v Melbourne (Brunswick St), 1963: Round 10 v Geelong (Brunswick St), 1965: Round 2 v Footscray (Western Oval), 1970: Round 1 v Richmond (MCG), 1971: Round 21 v Carlton (Junction), 1978: Round 4 v South Melbourne (Junction), 1979: Round 17 v Melbourne (Waverley), 1983: Round 13 v North Melbourne (Junction), 1983: Round 21 v Collingwood (Junction), 1984: Round 22 v St Kilda (Junction), 1986: Elimination Final v Essendon (Waverley), 1986: First Semi-Final v Sydney (MCG), 1991: Round 24 v West Coast (Princes Park), 1992: Round 11 v Collingwood (Princes Park), 1995: Round 8 v Adelaide (Football Park), 1996: Round 8 v Fremantle (Western Oval)
 

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Oct 17, 2000
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For me

1. 1986: Elimination Final v Essendon (Waverley)
2. 1983: Round 13 v North Melbourne (Junction)
3. 1979: Round 17 v Melbourne (Waverley)
4. 1991: Round 24 v West Coast (Princes Park)
5. 1992: Round 11 v Collingwood (Princes Park)
6. 1986: First Semi-Final v Sydney (MCG)
7. 1944: Grand Final v Richmond (Junction)
8. 1963: Round 10 v Geelong (Brunswick St)
9. 1970: Round 1 v Richmond (MCG)
10. 1996: Round 8 v Fremantle (Western Oval)
 
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Hi Pete - I know I'm not a Fitzroy fan, but I love these sorts of books. I'll definitely try and get a lok at it sometime.

Regarding the game Rd 1 1970, I claim shenanigans. A) We had to play on a Sunday!! B) We were in front at half-time, and then everything changed. I reckon as soon as the Queen met the players, the fix was in. (Lizzie probably thought she was related to most of the Fitzroy boys).

Interestingly, Richmond played Fitzroy in Round 1 five times during the 1970s. Algorithm must have been a bit stuck.
 

FitzroyPete

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For me

1. 1986: Elimination Final v Essendon (Waverley)
2. 1983: Round 13 v North Melbourne (Junction)
3. 1979: Round 17 v Melbourne (Waverley)
4. 1991: Round 24 v West Coast (Princes Park)
5. 1992: Round 11 v Collingwood (Princes Park)
6. 1986: First Semi-Final v Sydney (MCG)
7. 1944: Grand Final v Richmond (Junction)
8. 1963: Round 10 v Geelong (Brunswick St)
9. 1970: Round 1 v Richmond (MCG)
10. 1996: Round 8 v Fremantle (Western Oval)

Roylion, that's a pretty good effort.
You have 7 of the 10 correct.
You're the clubhouse leader.
 

FitzroyPete

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Hi Pete - I know I'm not a Fitzroy fan, but I love these sorts of books. I'll definitely try and get a lok at it sometime.

Regarding the game Rd 1 1970, I claim shenanigans. A) We had to play on a Sunday!! B) We were in front at half-time, and then everything changed. I reckon as soon as the Queen met the players, the fix was in. (Lizzie probably thought she was related to most of the Fitzroy boys).

Interestingly, Richmond played Fitzroy in Round 1 five times during the 1970s. Algorithm must have been a bit stuck.

Thanks, Wallaby, I think you'll enjoy the book.
If a BigFooty poster - irrespective of whether they support the Roys - buys the book, I'll throw in a complimentary copy of my first major book, Dreamer, Drifter, Drunk.
Courtesy of a number of other resources, I've obtained a few quirky anecdotes about the Royal Family game to begin 1970.
Yes, it seems as though the VFL had a fixation about the Roys & Tigers kicking off the season in the 1970s, with the Tigers holding a 3-2 lead.
I've included nine of Fitzroy's wins over Richmond in the book.
The book is heavily biased because the Roys never lose!
 
May 8, 2007
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Thanks, Wallaby, I think you'll enjoy the book.
If a BigFooty poster - irrespective of whether they support the Roys - buys the book, I'll throw in a complimentary copy of my first major book, Dreamer, Drifter, Drunk.
Courtesy of a number of other resources, I've obtained a few quirky anecdotes about the Royal Family game to begin 1970.
Yes, it seems as though the VFL had a fixation about the Roys & Tigers kicking off the season in the 1970s, with the Tigers holding a 3-2 lead.
I've included nine of Fitzroy's wins over Richmond in the book.
The book is heavily biased because the Roys never lose!

Just to be 100% sure - you do know what 'Fitzroy' as a name means?
 
Oct 17, 2000
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Just to be 100% sure - you do know what 'Fitzroy' as a name means?

I do. If the royal family were ever to support an AFL team, it would have been Fitzroy. Colours, emblem and name all scream "royalty". Princess Anne apparently barracked for the Lions on that day in 1970.
 

FitzroyPete

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Ross Smith: “The Prince (Charles) watched the game briefly and then commented: ‘It’s not at all like rugger, is it?’ They appeared to be barracking for Fitzroy because they were the underdog and Prince Charles enjoyed it immensely and was reluctant to leave.”

You're spot on there, Roylion.
The quote above came from an issue of Football Life (I can't remember what month/year).
I'm not a Royalist myself, but Fitzroy does have a regal sound about it.
My other football love, coincidentally, are the East Perth Royals.
 

FitzroyPete

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Wallaby: Just to be 100% sure - you do know what 'Fitzroy' as a name means?

Wallaby, I had to resort to Google for an answer.
I believe it's an Anglo-Norman name meaning "son of the king".
 

FitzroyPete

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Just my kind of book.

In a perfect world they never would.

Roylion, given you have 7 out of 10 at your first attempt, feel free to have another crack at naming all 10.
I'm going to relax the "one answer per day" rule for obvious reasons.
I have to teach online between 3.30pm and 8pm EST, so I won't be able to "mark" future entries until later.
 
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Wallaby: Just to be 100% sure - you do know what 'Fitzroy' as a name means?

Wallaby, I had to resort to Google for an answer.
I believe it's an Anglo-Norman name meaning "son of the king".

Close. It actually means 'illegitimate son of the king'. Fitz- is a common surname prefix that originally was used just to mean 'Son of' - Fitzpatrick, Fitzwilliam etc. However, royalty was not keen on identifying bastard children as being part of the line, and so instead of using a name like 'Fitztudor' or something similar, the name 'FitzRoy' became common usage. ('Son of Royalty').
Everyone knew the reason behind the name, and the Fitzroys became an aristocratic family (or to be pedantic families - those kings got around a bit) in their own right - Charles Fitzroy was Governer of the Colony of New South Wales, and the man whom the suburb of Fitzroy was named after. His brother Robert became Governor of New Zealand, and was captain of The Beagle during Charles Darwin's voyage around the world in which he formulated his Theory of Natural Selection.
 
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Close. It actually means 'illegitimate son of the king'. Fitz- is a common surname prefix that originally was used just to mean 'Son of' - Fitzpatrick, Fitzwilliam etc. However, royalty was not keen on identifying bastard children as being part of the line, and so instead of using a name like 'Fitztudor' or something similar, the name 'FitzRoy' became common usage. ('Son of Royalty').

'Fitzroy' was originally Norman-French for "son of the King." It became a surname amongst certain noble families wishing to accentuate their royal ancestry. Up to about the time of Henry I (r. 1100-1135), the term Atheling was used for the throneworthy sons of Kings. Henry I's legitimate son William was William Adelin (Atheling), while his eldest illegitimate son Robert was Robert Fitzroy Earl of Gloucester.

Some other famous royal "Fitzroys" apart from Robert were:

- Matilda Fitzroy Duchess of Brittany (illegitimate daughter of Henry I)
- Philip Fitzroy (illegtimate son of King John)
- Richard Fitzroy (illegtimate son of King John)
- Adam Fitzroy (illegitmate son of Edward II)
- Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond (illegitimate son of Henry VIII. At one stage his father planned for him to become King of England. We may have had the House of Fitzroy on the English throne!)

And then there were the illegitimate children of King Charles II, who all had the surname "Fitzroy" and their descendants kept the name such as (as you've already mentioned) Charles Augustus Fitzroy (1796–1858), Governor of New South Wales, between 1845 and 1853. Between 1853 and 1855 he was governor of Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia all at the same time. He also married Lady Mary Lennox (daughter of the Duke of Richmond!).

Charles Augustus Fitzroy was himself the grandson of Augustus 3rd Duke of Grafton, a British Prime Minister who was the great grandson of Henry Fitzroy, 1st Duke of Grafton, son of Charles II.
 

FitzroyPete

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'Fitzroy' was originally Norman-French for "son of the King." It became a surname amongst certain noble families wishing to accentuate their royal ancestry. Up to about the time of Henry I (r. 1100-1135), the term Atheling was used for the throneworthy sons of Kings. Henry I's legitimate son William was William Adelin (Atheling), while his eldest illegitimate son Robert was Robert Fitzroy Earl of Gloucester.

Some other famous royal "Fitzroys" apart from Robert were:

- Matilda Fitzroy Duchess of Brittany (illegitimate daughter of Henry I)
- Philip Fitzroy (illegtimate son of King John)
- Richard Fitzroy (illegtimate son of King John)
- Adam Fitzroy (illegitmate son of Edward II)
- Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond (illegitimate son of Henry VIII. At one stage his father planned for him to become King of England. We may have had the House of Fitzroy on the English throne!)

And then there were the illegitimate children of King Charles II, who all had the surname "Fitzroy" and their descendants kept the name such as (as you've already mentioned) Charles Augustus Fitzroy (1796–1858), Governor of New South Wales, between 1845 and 1853. Between 1853 and 1855 he was governor of Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia all at the same time. He also married Lady Mary Lennox (daughter of the Duke of Richmond!).

Charles Augustus Fitzroy was himself the grandson of Augustus 3rd Duke of Grafton, a British Prime Minister who was the great grandson of Henry Fitzroy, 1st Duke of Grafton, son of Charles II.

Roylion and Wallaby, I think there's a book in this!
I recall one of the troopers in The Wild Colonial Boy was named Fitzroy.
I'd love to say more, but I have to go and do 4.5 hours of teaching online to pay some of the book's printing bills.
 

FitzroyPete

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'Fitzroy' was originally Norman-French for "son of the King." It became a surname amongst certain noble families wishing to accentuate their royal ancestry. Up to about the time of Henry I (r. 1100-1135), the term Atheling was used for the throneworthy sons of Kings. Henry I's legitimate son William was William Adelin (Atheling), while his eldest illegitimate son Robert was Robert Fitzroy Earl of Gloucester.

Some other famous royal "Fitzroys" apart from Robert were:

- Matilda Fitzroy Duchess of Brittany (illegitimate daughter of Henry I)
- Philip Fitzroy (illegtimate son of King John)
- Richard Fitzroy (illegtimate son of King John)
- Adam Fitzroy (illegitmate son of Edward II)
- Henry Fitzroy, Duke of Richmond (illegitimate son of Henry VIII. At one stage his father planned for him to become King of England. We may have had the House of Fitzroy on the English throne!)

And then there were the illegitimate children of King Charles II, who all had the surname "Fitzroy" and their descendants kept the name such as (as you've already mentioned) Charles Augustus Fitzroy (1796–1858), Governor of New South Wales, between 1845 and 1853. Between 1853 and 1855 he was governor of Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia all at the same time. He also married Lady Mary Lennox (daughter of the Duke of Richmond!).

Charles Augustus Fitzroy was himself the grandson of Augustus 3rd Duke of Grafton, a British Prime Minister who was the great grandson of Henry Fitzroy, 1st Duke of Grafton, son of Charles II.

There's a lot of illegitimacy mentioned among the royal Fitzroys listed above, Roylion.
But then again, illegitimacy goes with the territory when it comes to monarchies the world over.
It's quite appropriate that the Duke of Richmond and the monarchy, in general, get a guernsey.
You and Wallaby mentioned this game earlier, but yesterday was the 50th anniversary of Fitzroy's victory over reigning premier Richmond at the MCG in front of the Royal Family in the VFL's first official Sunday.
Suffice to say, this game rates very highly in my book.
 
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