theprospector
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Starting to realise the real answer is if Sydney are in the other prelim, your prelim is the grand final
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Instances where the Preliminary Final was the real grand final
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Stan_Darsh72
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Between Everitt, Loewe, Vidovic and Winmar it was a cursed last week of a finals series.
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As Sydney's Grand Final history is poor, the winner was always going to come out of either GWS or Bulldogs back in 2016
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Controversial pick but I think Hawthorn v Crows in 2012 was the real GF match up.
They were the two best teams in it all year IMO. Dangerfield's coming of age was that final series.
Had we kicked straight we would have blitzed the Swans. Was very much an 08 like choke.
They were the two best teams in it all year IMO. Dangerfield's coming of age was that final series.
Had we kicked straight we would have blitzed the Swans. Was very much an 08 like choke.
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Port vs Hawks in 2014 is another mention. Swans smashed North the previous day and that prelim was a thriller. Had Port kicked straight they would've made the GF from 5th but the Hawks went on to dominate Sydney and win by 10 goals.
I fundamentally disagree with the idea that the grand final match-up can make it a foregone conclusion. One side can be heavy favourites, sure, and favourites usually win, but either team can be better on the day.
Dead right about that finals system. Crows won the '98 GF despite a thumping at the hands of the Dees in their first final after finishing 5th, but advance to the second week. By contrast sides like St.Kilda in 1992 are bundled out despite finishing 3rd, but lose their week one final and are out on their backsides.
They did make an alteration to the final 6 as in 1992 there was a degree of dissatisfaction with the twin meetings of both Cats vs Dogs, and Cats vs Eagles in that year's finals system. Now the only way a repeat matchup can happen is 1st week, then GF.
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The old McIntyre 8 system used from the mid-late 90s
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I think Sydney and Hawthorn were the two best teams in it though in 2014.
IIRC we went in as underdogs.
Stan_Darsh72
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The 2016 GWS vs Dogs prelim felt just as heavy as the Grand Final.
Dogs finally got over that hump and maybe the gf felt like a breeze.
(Although from a mates of mine POV who was rostered to work the 2019 GF at richmond station, GWS winning over Collingwood gave him more joy than any premiership can ever give anyone on this site)
Dogs finally got over that hump and maybe the gf felt like a breeze.
(Although from a mates of mine POV who was rostered to work the 2019 GF at richmond station, GWS winning over Collingwood gave him more joy than any premiership can ever give anyone on this site)
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I agree with this.
I remember watching that prelim final. Half time score was Richmond 4.5.29 to cats 7.8.50.
Even when Geelong were In front at half time, Richmond were gonna slowly and gradually fight back.
3 quarter time score was Richmond 9.7.61 to cats 8.9.57
The final score was 12.13.85 to 9.12.66.
So tigers out scored cats 3.5.23 to 1.3.9 in the final quarter.
Even when tigers had a 10 or 11 or 12 point lead in that final quarter, it didn't even look like cats were gonna win or even claw back the deficit.
Even when the tigers won by 3 goals, it felt like a comfortable win despite the 3 goal win. It felt like a 6 to 8 goal win considering how the tigers midfield dominated the 2nd half.
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really? I was there, wasn't a great game. Not one I would have said "this deserves to be a GF"
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yeah.. so the correct answer is 1994 PF, NM v Geelong. Best game I've ever been to, even though we lost. Had absolutely everything, including a fair dose of questionable umpiring.
Macca180
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2007 Geelong V Collingwood Prelim was the best two teams and the real grand final
Great battle and the winner was always going to win the grand final easily.
The other prelim Port got North Melbourne at footy park.
Great battle and the winner was always going to win the grand final easily.
The other prelim Port got North Melbourne at footy park.
Haha my god you W.A people are something else, GF was a genuine 50/50, the story you just made up was the one your inferiority complex constructed.
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?
From OP:
"when a prelim was a lot better than the Grand Final"
"What a beauty of a game of footy that was"
That 97 prelim wasn't a lot better than the 97 GF, and it wasn't a beauty of a game of footy.
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Actually one of the prouder losses I've witnessed. I don't know how Tigers fans feel, but that half time lead was built on Geelong literally throwing everything they had at Richmond, who really were team of destiny. I mean we had Ratagoulea in the ruck ffs and Lachie Henderson at FF (Hawkins suspended).
View attachment Bandicam 2025-09-17 11-17-58-195.mp4
Story I made up? Yes the GF was a 50/50 (thats my point) - but that's NOT how it was portrayed before hand. If you lived in a bubble and missed the media hype around Pies/Tigers, then great!
Heck, the media was also talking up how great it is that Melbourne was gonna make a GF - though they were tipped to lose v winner of Pies/Tigers by most pundits
I really do think people from the west have a wonderfully distorted view of the media over here, especially during finals.
My distinct recollection was that the Prelim was pretty much going to be a smashing and that the natural Grand Final was Richmond v West Coast, based on the Eagles beating Collingwood a fortnight earlier (and Eagles and Tiges being 1 and 2).
Even when WA win a premiership, they have to turn it into a gripe about Victoria.
We see the same shows you do - they're all based in Victoria.
This wasnt a gripe about Victoria - this was an example when a lot of people saw a PL as the "real GF", that didnt pan out - if you didn't see that, then great!
But your right - everyone expected Tiges to win the PL and the GF - everyone else was just making up numbers.
The media (Vic media if you must) very much saw the Pies and Tiges as having a great atmosphere and probably pointed out that it hadn't happened since 1980, but that's not the same as ignoring the blindingly obvious and that the 'real' expected GF was West Coast v Richmond.
Collingwood making it was a massive surprise all around.
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