Win Prizes New footy book - The Phoenix Rises

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We have been given 5 of these books to give away by Slattery Media.

The Phoenix Rises is the remarkable story of the transformation of ‘Australia’s Game’ from a troubled Victorian Football League to the Australian Football League powerhouse of today, told by the man who pulled the levers for drastic change.​

To win a copy, just tell us a story about something that happened on the footy field in the 80's that a player wouldn't get away with these days, or that just wouldn't happen any more.

We'll pick the best stories and have a copy of this book sent to the author of the story.

The rest of the blurb from Slattery:

In 1986, Ross Oakley was appointed chairman and CEO of the struggling VFL. During the 10 years that followed he oversaw the revolution of the game and its administrative structure, and took the League from all but broke into a massive business. Often faced with very public and emotive opposition and criticism, he took brave decisions to take the game to new frontiers. His legacy is the national competition, and Australian sport's most professional administration, led by the AFL Commission.​
​
Told from Oakley’s unique vantage point, The Phoenix Rises revisits the 80s, a turbulent and divisive era in AFL history, and reveals, for the first time, the off field tumult that took place, often behind closed doors. From never before revealed insights taken from the confidential minutes of the League, to the faltering steps behind the AFL’s ground-breaking Racial and Religious Vilification laws, The Phoenix Rises exposes the full picture, and the truth behind the drive to the national competition and the independent Commission.​
​
In praise of The Phoenix Rises, legendary football journalist Mike Sheahan writes: ‘This book reminds us of how the transition unfolded and of the constant drama that beset those early days. It is a painstaking exercise of interviews with key participants, of hours and hours poring over minutes of dozens of critical meetings, of reflections formed and strengthened by time.’​
​
The Phoenix Rises is the perfect book for AFL fans, sports enthusiasts and sports administrators. With Father’s Day not far away it’s also the ideal gift for the footy mad dad.​
 
I was 4. I remember very little, but Dad took me to a game in 1989.

Dad drove us to Waverley Park to watch a game. We played Fitzroy. We got there nice and early and were able to watch the reserves run around. We got to sit on wooden seats without being designated a particular one, and were free to move from end to end each quarter if we wanted.

Dad bought me a bucket of chips and got change from a $5 note. He had the option, although he didn't partake, of buying a beer in a can, not a plastic cup. We saw shirtfronts, defenders spoiling via chopping arms, a holding the ball rule that was relatively easy to follow, and if you didn't hold the ball in one hand and punch with the other in a closed first, it was called a throw.

When the ball was at the other end, there were still multiple players in the closest 50m arc. And the full forward only had to contend generally with the full back, not a 12 man zone inside 50m. Occasionally the ruckman dropped into the hole. This day he got away with it. He didn't dare when we played St Kilda.

After the game was done Dad took me out on the oval to run around for a bit, but not too long for fear I'd cop a Sherrin to the head. We then sat in the car park for about as long as the second half took to play, and on the way home on the freeway could easily tell who won the rest of that day's games by the other cars and the scarves that were hanging out the window.
 

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1989 was the first time i attended a footy match. it was north adelaide vs central district in the sanfl. mum gave me $2 to spend on food. i got a can of coke, a pack of chips and a pack of PK gum, with change for lollies at the deli after the game.

as soon as the final siren went, my cousin took my hand and we sprinted onto the oval and patted each of the players on the back as they ran off the field. then we played marks up on the main north rd end of prospect oval until mum was ready to leave
 
I remember a St Kilda game at VFL Park when a dog got onto the field. While this was not a commonplace occurrence, it was greeted with the usual cheers as it evaded various attempts of capture. However it strayed a bit too close to St Kilda's Doug Booth who swung his boot at the poor dog as it ran past. I don't think Booth made contact but even so I reckon he'd be in for spell on the sidelines if he'd done it today.
 
In 1988, I attended my first ever VFL match - the 1988 GF between Melbourne and Hawthorn. In August, I went into the local travel agency and bought the entire MCG finals series ticket book for $30, which would have also got me into the QF between Coll and Carl, and the SF between Coll and Melb, if I'd been able to get to Melbourne on those two weekends as well (you couldn't split the book, so I had to pay $30 to get into a GF instead of $10). The return airfare, flying Australian Airlines (which had only recently renamed itself from TAA) cost me $170. A mate from Launceston accompanied me over there, and I met my Perth-based brother, who barracks for Melbourne, at the game. Arriving way early, we ended up in Bay 14, and discovered the answer to Bay 13's notoriety (the only women's toilets on that side of the ground). We went for a walk around the ground later on, and accidentally went through a door that took us outside. The gate guy let us back in with just the ticket stub and no passout. My favourite moments were Brereton's set shot banana goal from the right pocket, which was an amazing feat at the time, and the rolling maul defence incident in the centre of the ground that appeared on youtube, which drew an audible gasp from the 97k crowd and big applause even from the opposition supporters...

In 1989, I would have been able to repeat the entire process, and seen back to back Hawk flags as well as the greatest GF in history - but the pilots went on a strike that lasted for months...denied...made up for it a little when my second Hawks match saw them rack up their biggest ever score v Fitzroy at North Hobart in 1991...
 
Something that players wouldn't get away with anymore?

Mark Yeates and Zane Taylor from Geelong. I think either both were suspended or 1 was and the other injured. I was about 12 or 13 sitting on the boundary at Kardinia Park one day. They were both standing behind me sucking down cans all day. When the final siren sounded, I jumped the fence with my footy to go for a kick. They both jumped over too, to head over to the rooms (probably more likely the social club) and proceeded to have a bit of kick to kick with me, they were maggotted and kids were coming from everywhere trying to take hangers on them and they were both complying.

These days they'd either be sitting in the coaches box or in the players area with their club blazers and ties on drinking water.
 
in the final round of 1986, North Melbourne were playing essendon at windy hill, North Melb were already out of finals calculation having lost the previous week, Essendon couldnt miss the finals no matter the result.

I believe it was in the first qtr, but there was an incident between several players of both teams, and whilst the umpire was attending to several players, one of the Krakouer brothers, cant remember which one, lashed out and struck Mark harvey right in the face, it was right there on camera for all to see, but the umpire didnt see it, so nothing got done about it.

North went on to win the game by 22 points.

Today, it would be a match review panel job, where he probably would get about 3 weeks after an early guilty plea.
 
something that doesnt happen anymore...........

in the early 1980;s, namely 81-82, i went to the junction oval to see a few games, because it was the closest ground to me at the time, and when the reserves were on, and the qtr, half time and 3 qtr time breaks, you could go onto the ground, listen to the address, have a kick and get a few autographs. i believe it was the only league ground where this could happen, although i maybe wrong.they were great days.
 
something that doesnt happen anymore....................

i remember going to the 1985 finals series, in particular, the preliminary final v footscray at vfl park. Back then you had the under 19s and reserves finals on as well, and this season, Hawthorn had all 3 grades playing in a prelim final. I was at the ground at about 10am, to see the under 19s get thrashed by North Melb, then watched the reserves defeat Melbourne, followed by the seniors defeat Footscray. What a big day of footy, 3 games! i slept really well that night.
 
Something that players wouldn't get away with anymore?

I was at Glenelg Oval in the 80s watching Glenelg v Sturt in the SANFL and back pocket Ross Gibbs - Bryce's old man - decided he wanted to sneak forward to grab a cheap goal. With the play on the grandstand wing, he basically left his man and walked around the outside of the boundary line on the outer side up to the forward pocket. Then the ball was kicked into the centre of the ground and the defenders ran back. Ross hid behind the point post and, to the laughs of the throng of people on the hill, put his finger up to his lips, telling us all to shut up.

The Glenelg players kicked the ball forward, Ross appeared from behind the point post and took an uncontested mark in the goal square. Bang. Goal. He then trotted back to the back pocket.

The ball is bounced again in the middle and heads over to the grandstand wing. Ross Gibbs starts his old trick of losing his man and walking around the boundary line on the outer side. By this time the whole crowd on the outer side is killing themselves laughing and giving him a standing ovation as he heads forward around the boundary line. This time Gibbs is waving and blowing kisses to the crowd.

By this time the Glenelg runner appeared and sprinted towards Gibbs, swearing and screaming at him to get back to his position in the back line. The abuse and cans that rained down on the runner was hilarious as he basically pulled Gibbs by his arm back to the back pocket, where his opponent was just standing there.

Pre-zone, pre-matchup. Good times. :thumbsu:
 
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Not footballers in the 80s but the cheersquad.

It was either between the reserves game and the senior game or half time of the seniors. The cheersquad to try and raise some funds would walk around the boundary line with a blanket stretched between 4 of them for people to throw donations into. There'd be a couple of spare hands walking with them to retrieve any money that might have missed the blanket. This was pre $1 and $2 coins for you youngens.

The most popular donations that I used to see heading in the direction of the blanket were half eaten pies, half empty vb cans and lots of roasted peanuts in their shells.
 
Good stories, i only have a tfl one being in tassie as a kid in the 80s

But during a semi final between north launceston and clarence at york park (aurora stadium) my sister and i were bored and dad put us on the ground and we played chasies on the boundary

You wouldnt get away with that these days at even a tfl game
 
I remember being at the game Whacko Jacko was pelted with full beer cans at the game and him returning fire with the very same beer cans randomly at the crowd.
 
 
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