Best semi-finals of all time

[TheEscapeClub]

Recall all the talk that week was who would tag Couch and Bairstow, so old mate Blight started them both on the bench for 20 minutes!!

1978 1st semi was peak Collingwood v Carlton, an absolute car park brawl lol, would be called off after ten minutes these days

I was at the Geelong v Carlton EF the week before, it was the first final I'd been to live. Bloody Catoggio came off the bench and killed us. Looking at that clip, the Pies tried to kill him.

 

[TubbsFarquhar]

2002 Melbourne vs Adelaide was a ripper.

Great game, but it should never have been at the G.

What an absolute farce that rule was.

 

[Gavin Excell]

I find this to be the least interesting of the four finals weeks. That might just be because my team has a bad history of losing in week 2.

Nah
It's the weakest link of the big 4 weeks by miles

 

[kickazz]

Nah
It's the weakest link of the big 4 weeks by miles

It can sometimes be good, especially for elim.winners in good form.

But other times it feels like a stay of execution for QF losers who find out in the first week they are not quite good enough.

Still, the prize for winning is a spot in a Prelim, which is pretty exciting.

 

[Clark G]

Swans v Cats 05 is the best SF I've seen. I think it was Huddo, or maybe one of the other commentators that night, that said it's the loudest crowd they've ever heard. It was absolutely bonkers.

One thing about the commentary for that game that was funny was Stephen Silvagni complaining non-stop about the ground being wet due to the sprinklers being on at the ground earlier that day.

 

[BigVic]

Semis are usually underrated. Another one of my favourites is Collingwood vs West Coast 2012 SF. That was an emotional win for us days after the death of John McCarthy

 

[BigVic]

2002 Melbourne vs Adelaide was a ripper.

MCG had to host at least one final until 2004. Crows were forced to travel

 

[The Dougster]

Richmond vs Essendon 1995, and our second-half comeback from being 5 goals down at halftime. This game was a highlight for a generation of Tigers fans among many lean years.

Best remembered for Matty Knights and his running goals

 

[StillAtLarge]

Both semis in 2014 were pretty memorable with the qualifying final losers eliminated

 

[BStaff17]

The loss against Geelong in 2020 was the Lions worst finals defeat from the Fagan era. They had spanked Richmond at home in the QF only to not turn up in the prelim.

Pressure of getting a home GF got to them.

 

[BigVic]

Both semis in 2014 were pretty memorable with the qualifying final losers eliminated

This was 2 years before the pre finals bye was introduced and the only time both losers of the qualifying final were eliminated in week 2

 

[tigerland_1720]

Best remembered for Matty Knights and his running goals

Yep, Knighter single handedly kept us in the game in the first half.

 

[Freshwater]

I was at the 2009 semi final Bulldogs v Swans and the highlight at least the most memorable moment was the ground staff accidentally started playing ‘Long way to the top’ AC/DC instead of the national anthem.

 

[PerthBoy86]

Nah
It's the weakest link of the big 4 weeks by miles

I dunno, like the SFs are both knockout finals like the EFs and PFs. Unless it's a tasty matchup, QFs can be less interesting as the loser still gets another chance.

 

[Substance]

I was at the 2009 semi final Bulldogs v Swans and the highlight at least the most memorable moment was the ground staff accidentally started playing ‘Long way to the top’ AC/DC instead of the national anthem.

Must have been vs brisbane(2009), because I was at 2010 vs swans & don't remember that.

 

[philohk]

He had a migraine at half time and went had a sleep during the break. Came back out and kicked two goals - one from the impossible pocket at Football Park and the second the winner.

My first trip interstate to watch the Hawks and one of the best weekends of my life

I was living in Japan at the time, and it was much harder then to watch games (complete shock: the AFL site was s**t then as well, and the radio links to Hawks game were regularly not working, making me contact support to explain that it wasn't my operating system, you just need to make the link live like the ******* other ones). Anyway, a family member taped this and I think the Swans EF the week before, then to get them to work on my Japanese video player I had to take them to the local Pakistani restaurant where the guy would convert them to the right format. So I knew the result before I watched, still couldn't believe it. And loved those Johnny Barker goals. Also, the owner was always up for a chat about Pakistani history and the tikka was top notch. Good times.

 

[Freshwater]

Must have been vs brisbane(2009), because I was at 2010 vs swans & don't remember that.

Yes, you are correct. A very windy night. The highlight was AC/DC and we won.

 

[PonsfordMagpie]

SF 1977 = Coll vs Haw
SF 1980 = Carl vs Coll
SF 1981 = Coll vs Fitz
SF 1984 = Ess vs Haw
SF 1986 = Syd vs Fitz
SF 1991 = Haw vs Geel
SF 1995 = Rich vs Ess
SF 2001 = PA vs Haw
SF 2002 = Adel vs Melb
SF 2005 = Syd vs Geel
SF 2007 = WC vs Coll
SF 2009 = Coll vs Adel
SF 2011 = WC vs Carl
SF 2014 = Geel vs NM
SF 2016 = Haw vs WB
SF 2019 = Bris vs GWS
SF 2021 = Bris vs WB

 

[Defabs]

One thing about the commentary for that game that was funny was Stephen Silvagni complaining non-stop about the ground being wet due to the sprinklers being on at the ground earlier that day.

Silvagni destroyed one of the most famous commentary moments too. After Huddo’s “I see it, but I don’t believe it”, Silvagni then talks for 20 seconds about the bleeding obvious and just talks about the tap to Davis and then goal!

 

[underthestars]

.

 

[kickazz]

Tonight's was close but a bit meh to watch.

 

[Mark W]

Tonight's was close but a bit meh to watch.

The skills were deplorable

 

[AlwaysHawks15]

It can sometimes be good, especially for elim.winners in good form.

But other times it feels like a stay of execution for QF losers who find out in the first week they are not quite good enough.

Still, the prize for winning is a spot in a Prelim, which is pretty exciting.

It turned out alright for us in 2015. Lost in Perth in the QF than smacked Adelaide and than went back to Perth and beat Freo which got us the rematch with West Coast in the GF and the rest is history. Not many teams have traveled to Perth twice in the same finals series and won the flag. Meaning nobody else has done it.

 

[Lingsface]

That was a banger of a game such a contest!

 

[Blue1980]

Adelaide v Bulldogs, 1997

That was a prelim.

Crows v cats was the semi, the Colbert mark not paid game.