The ones that got away

[Partridge]

OK , might be technically wrong but if Williams stayed at Geelong , Couch would have not been played as much or moved on. It was around this time that Cresswell was at Geelong and he moved on for the same reason

Cresswell? You mean Adrian Fletcher?

Couch would have had to have played somewhere else I guess. Either way it would have been better for us with Williams.

 

[Turbocat]

Cresswell? You mean Adrian Fletcher?

Couch would have had to have played somewhere else I guess. Either way it would have been better for us with Williams.

I forgot about Fletcher, the same applies to him but Cresswell was at Geelong for a period. Pretty sure Geelong just saw him as another one paced player.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daryn_Cresswell
Cresswell started his football with Glenorchy in the Tasmanian Football League. He also briefly played for Geelong Reserves in the Victorian Football League,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daryn_Cresswell

 

[MC Extra Dollop]

What's the story with Primus? Geelong reserves player before he started with Fitzroy...

 

[JUBJUB]

What's the story with Primus? Geelong reserves player before he started with Fitzroy...

Blight thought he was useless

 

[Partridge]

I forgot about Fletcher, the same applies to him but Cresswell was at Geelong for a period. Pretty sure Geelong just saw him as another one paced player.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daryn_Cresswell
Cresswell started his football with Glenorchy in the Tasmanian Football League. He also briefly played for Geelong Reserves in the Victorian Football League,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daryn_Cresswell

There's something I didn't know. Never knew he'd been at Geelong before he became an assistant coach.

 

[JUBJUB]

There's something I didn't know. Never knew he'd been at Geelong before he became an assistant coach.

Yep,he worked at Benders Busway as a mechanic while playing for Geelong

 

[Boxhead_31]

I was personally disappointed when we lost Michael Mansfield. Seeing him playing his 200th game for Carlton I thought was wrong. Sure we got his best years, but still bothered me at the time nonetheless.

Didn't we draft Chappy with the pick we got for Mick?
That sooths the disappointment of Mick going to the Blues

 

[jaykay72]

Everyone forgets or chooses to ignore that Blake was better than Mumford when they were together. Mumford has improved since, but the reality is there was no way Geelong could compete with Sydney's offer and that was that. Much like Gold Coast with Ablett.

Gotta say I somewhat disagree with your recollections here. I have no doubt the Cats realised that Mumford was, at that stage, a better prospect than Blake; given the time they had respectively taken to 'develop' to that point (ie YEARS for Blakey, & only about 1 year for Mummy). Whilst Mumford didn't play finals that year (IIRC he played right up to the last couple of rounds, but Otto came back, the Cats went with the more 'experienced/seasoned body' for September in Blake, as a tough, long year caught up with Mummy), they would've loved to have kept him on, but for 2 reasons: could not even come close to matching Sydney's offer due to salary cap constraints & (again) IIRC the man he would've replaced on the list (Blake) was already contracted (although I may have that wrong - 2 year contract after '07 premiership, then another after '09?).

 

[FredLeDeux]

Blight thought he was useless

Bob Davis always said we should have done more to keep him, grandson of Saint Reg and all.

 

[Isaac Norm Smith]

I was personally disappointed when we lost Michael Mansfield. Seeing him playing his 200th game for Carlton I thought was wrong. Sure we got his best years, but still bothered me at the time nonetheless.

True. He'll always be a Geelong man though. With the pick they gave us for him we picked up a bloke called Paul Chapman. I think Mansfield only played 40 odd games with them, Paul Chapman on the other hand..

 

[catman 71]

I was personally disappointed when we lost Michael Mansfield. Seeing him playing his 200th game for Carlton I thought was wrong. Sure we got his best years, but still bothered me at the time nonetheless.

I remember, at the time, my brother said that Geelong had got ripped off, as Geelong had traded Michael Mansfield, and only got pick 35 in return.

However, we had the last laugh, since that pick 35 was used to recruit a pretty handy player. You may have heard of him- his name is Paul Chapman!

 

[_Me_]

If gfc knew judas was leaving mummy would have had a decent offer
Gfc was saving plenty for the little fella, otherwise mummy would have received the offer we needed to keep him
However west might have gone and duncan would not bee ours

 

[Stab Pass]

There is more to the Williams story than the extra $5,000 he asked for. When he re-tells the story he neglects to mention that he had done his knee the year before and missed a big chunk of games and that the club had paid him in full as a show of good faith. He then asked for the additional $5,000 at the end of 1985 and the club felt they had already done the right thing by him once.

Williams pretty much only cared about Williams. Had we found the $5000 we may have kept him for another year but he would have left at some point.

 

[Strangled Cat]

I remember, at the time, my brother said that Geelong had got ripped off, as Geelong had traded Michael Mansfield, and only got pick 35 in return.

However, we had the last laugh, since that pick 35 was used to recruit a pretty handy player. You may have heard of him- his name is Paul Chapman!

He's not that bald fella in my avatar by any chance is he ?

 

[Pivo]

Thurley was delisted and taken by the Roos in the preseason draft of 2006. If we're splitting hairs you could argue that we got the best of Thurley too, 7 games of pure small forward bliss as opposed to the 5 nondescript games for them.

Yep, we didn't get anything from North but him leaving for $ at North allowed Geelong to draft Matthew Stokes.

We did well out of that one without even trying.

 

[STC]

Gotta say I somewhat disagree with your recollections here. I have no doubt the Cats realised that Mumford was, at that stage, a better prospect than Blake; given the time they had respectively taken to 'develop' to that point (ie YEARS for Blakey, & only about 1 year for Mummy). Whilst Mumford didn't play finals that year (IIRC he played right up to the last couple of rounds, but Otto came back, the Cats went with the more 'experienced/seasoned body' for September in Blake, as a tough, long year caught up with Mummy), they would've loved to have kept him on, but for 2 reasons: could not even come close to matching Sydney's offer due to salary cap constraints & (again) IIRC the man he would've replaced on the list (Blake) was already contracted (although I may have that wrong - 2 year contract after '07 premiership, then another after '09?).

Funny how every time we gave Blake a contract another ruckman left.

The club's choice of Blake over Mumford was made in September. I've no doubt if we'd played Mummy through finals he wouldn't have walked out with a premiership medal.

The mistake we made with Mummy was not promoting him after his first season. He wanted to be but they convinced him to stay on the rookie list so we could keep an extra spot open. I think we promoted Jason Davenport over Mummy in the end so that was the mistake.

But as for delisting Blake to keep Mummy that was never an option.

 

[SleazySimon]

Would hav been good if Ben graham didn't go to New York.

 

[MC Extra Dollop]

Gotta say I somewhat disagree with your recollections here. I have no doubt the Cats realised that Mumford was, at that stage, a better prospect than Blake; given the time they had respectively taken to 'develop' to that point (ie YEARS for Blakey, & only about 1 year for Mummy). Whilst Mumford didn't play finals that year (IIRC he played right up to the last couple of rounds, but Otto came back, the Cats went with the more 'experienced/seasoned body' for September in Blake, as a tough, long year caught up with Mummy), they would've loved to have kept him on, but for 2 reasons: could not even come close to matching Sydney's offer due to salary cap constraints & (again) IIRC the man he would've replaced on the list (Blake) was already contracted (although I may have that wrong - 2 year contract after '07 premiership, then another after '09?).

Mumford was clearly a better prospect than Blake, but Blake was better than Mumford in 2009. Better statistically almost across the board (I think Mumford only averaged more tackles from memory) and a vastly superior tap ruckman. Mark Blake's efforts to carry our ruck division in 2009, have been grossly undervalued, because of what happened to him and Mumford since then.

 

[Partridge]

Gotta say I somewhat disagree with your recollections here. I have no doubt the Cats realised that Mumford was, at that stage, a better prospect than Blake; given the time they had respectively taken to 'develop' to that point (ie YEARS for Blakey, & only about 1 year for Mummy). Whilst Mumford didn't play finals that year (IIRC he played right up to the last couple of rounds, but Otto came back, the Cats went with the more 'experienced/seasoned body' for September in Blake, as a tough, long year caught up with Mummy), they would've loved to have kept him on, but for 2 reasons: could not even come close to matching Sydney's offer due to salary cap constraints & (again) IIRC the man he would've replaced on the list (Blake) was already contracted (although I may have that wrong - 2 year contract after '07 premiership, then another after '09?).

That's it right there. Once the player decided to put the money before the club there was nothign Geelong could do (isn't it interesting how Ablett gets flayed for being greedy but Mumford doesn't?).

Mumford did not remotely deserve to play finals that year no matter what. No matter how much revisionist thinking is done. Check the stats in his last couple of games. Check his stats versus Blake's for that whole season. Just like Walker now he'd run out of steam completely. And as you correctly identified, the club didn't have a prayer in keeping him regardless.

Don't forget either, this whole "I would have stayed if I'd played in the Grand Final" garbage from Mumford only came after he'd left. He never uttered anything to that effect while he was there. I was at the 2009 Best and Fairest, spoke to Mumford and other players, and officials. There was nothing but goodwill towards him, and he certainly wasn't moaning about missing the Grand Final.

Far as I'm concerned he got a once in a lifetime deal from Sydney, good luck to him. But he's a two-faced liar who didn't have the guts to say anything while he was at Geelong. Screw him.

 

[blue_bear1]

Colbert broke my heart!

 

[MC Extra Dollop]

Colbert broke my heart!

Yeah, agreed. Ultimately it was for the best, but at the time I just thought the club was a complete shambles, which was pretty sad when most of my earliest memories of the footy growing up were of Geelong finishing near the top of the ladder and making grand finals almost every other year. I wasn't used to them being a basket case.

 

[The rabbi]

Colbert broke my heart!

Bill Ryan broke mine.

 

[Jimmy Yamazaki]

Would be interesting to see where we would be at this year had Mummy and Ablett stayed..

If Ablett had stayed, I wonder if we would still be chasing Boak? And would we still be top 4 with these 2 back in the side?

 

[jaykay72]

Would be interesting to see where we would be at this year had Mummy and Ablett stayed..
And would we still be top 4 with these 2 back in the side?

I was about to say "no doubt" but there's one big hypothetical - IF GAJ had stayed, just how many players would we have lost due to salary cap constraints? In retrospect, I think we've been extremely 'lucky' that Mummy's been the only one to be 'squeezed out' (perhaps also see below). Reports at the time suggested that we'd 'lose' at least a couple of senior players in order to pay GAJ (Wojo's was one of the names mentioned IIRC).

PS With all the talk of Essendon's 'crappy list' on the weekend, I was reminded of another 'one who got away' (well I thought he'd be a huge loss at the time) - Brent Prismall - what the hell's happened to him?! He sure made a great choice of clubs! (TBH he was a shot at playing in our GF side & looked like a gun at that stage).

 

[Stig_90]

Bill Ryan broke mine.

Clint Bizzell broke mine lol. I used to have his number 9 on my cats jumper and tore it off when he left. Little did I know how good James Kelly would become.