A look at the AFL’s worst misses at goal of all time
Footy throws up some soaring marks and bone-crunching tackles, but there’s also shots at goal that’ll go down in history as the worst misses of all time. Here’s some of them. 31 DAYS TO GO.
Lifestyle
Don't miss out on the headlines from Lifestyle. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Six weeks stuck at home seems like a lifetime right now, but we’ve got you covered for daily entertainment.
Lockdown Life, a digital subscriber special, will give you a five minute brain break each day from coronavirus and arm you with some handy tips as well on keeping the family busy with movies to watch and bike rides to enjoy, and the adults well stocked with wine and recipes ideas — just to name a few.
So keep an eye out each lunchtime online.
Today we share some of the most unbelievable misses we have seen in the history of Aussie rules.
PERCY JONES
We’ve all been there as footy fans. Your lumbering ruckman is lining up for a goal from point-blank range. A goal is seemingly a certainty, but yet they find a way to miss. Carlton legend Percy Jones took this to another level. On one afternoon at Moorabbin, Jones picked up the ball on the goal line only for him to miss the ball and kick the goalpost instead. It has to be seen to be believed.
SHANNON GRANT
Round 1 2007 is one game North Melbourne legend Shannon Grant would love to forget. The Magpies took a five-point lead with moments to go and the ‘Roos had a chance to respond when Grant took a mark inside 50. He was awarded a 50 metre penalty, putting Grant at the tip of the square where he sprayed his kick directly into the post. Controversially, the man on the mark was not placed on the goal line, meaning Grant had to take his kick from a little longer. Regardless, you just don’t miss those.
CAMERON LING
It’s your second game, you’re in a tight tussle with the almighty Bombers of the early 2000s and you miss from a metre out. That’s exactly what three-time premiership Cat Cameron Ling did. The former Geelong star received the ball from a Barry Stoneham tap and his opponent, James Hird had seemingly accepted Ling would make it a one point game. However, Ling didn’t just miss, he kicked it completely on the full! It’s almost an impressive feat that he was actually able to miss it by that much.
JOSH BRUCE
Bruce has been known as one of the AFL’s top sharpshooters. However, in 2017, he had just one of those moments in front of the big sticks. With the Saints up by an astounding 60 points against Hawthorn in Launceston, Bruce lumbered into an unguarded goalsquare to rub further salt in the wounds of his opponent. However, instead of taking the advice of Chubs Peterson and ‘tapping it in’, Bruce decided to torpedo the ball straight into the post. Thank god St Kilda won otherwise it would have been one interesting team meeting on Monday.
MALCOLM BLIGHT
Blighty arguably kicked one of the greatest goals in AFL history with his amazing torpedo to win the game in 1976. However, five years later, the 1978 Brownlow medallist arguably kicked one of the most amazing behinds in football history. After receiving a handball in the goalsquare, Blight turned and seemingly meant to kick the ball straight through for a point. Incredibly, he didn’t realise he had kicked a point until moments after he missed and teammate Stephen McCann looked at him with pure shock.
MATTHEW PAVLICH
A Dockers sharpshooter who you would back to kick the ball through the big sticks on any given day even had his moment. In 2010, Fremantle took on a struggling Richmond outfit at Docklands stadium and were tipped to steamroll past their opponent. In the opening moments, his teammate Aaron Sandilands put the ball on a silver platter for Pavlich who picked it up, slipped over his own two feet and the ball was rushed through for a behind. It foreshadowed a tough day for the Dockers who went on to lose to the Tigers.
TRAVIS CLOKE
If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again. The effort was there from Clokey who was having one of his career best seasons at the Pies and in late 2013, they had a win sewed up against the Swans. Their star-forward had not one but two great opportunities to add some much needed percentage. The first chance, a kick on the run from 15 metres out, missed. The second was marked on the tip of the goalsquare where he incredibly smacked the woodwork.
TIM MEMBREY
No Saints fans, we are not picking on you. You just have a lot of moments on the highlight reel. One year after Josh Bruce missed from point-blank range in Launceston, the Saints met the Hawks again in Tassie. On this occasion, it was his teammate Tim Membrey who was running into an open goal. Instead of going for a torpedo, he went the dribbler and remarkably hit the post. Jason Dunstall would have been fuming!
TAYLA HARRIS
The best in the game have their moments and this is no exception. In 2019, Carlton AFLW superstar Tayla Harris had a day to forget at GMHBA Stadium where she kicked 0.4 in a loss against Geelong. However, one of those behinds could have easily been averted as Harris hit the post from only metres out. Her reaction to the miss says it all!
LUKE MCGUANE
Before Tom Lynch was missing from directly in-front, there was Luke McGuane’s day to forget at Subiaco back in 2012. In a fixture which already threw up one of the worst misses of all time from Matthew Pavlich, the Tigers swingman was almost trying his best to outdo him. Early in the game, McGuane received a handpass from Jake King, sold some candy in the goalsquare twice and somehow had his shot touched on the line. It only got worse, when the game was all but over, McGuane roved the ball from the pack and strode into an open goal and channelled his inner Percy Jones by drop-kicking the ball into the post. Even on commentary, Dermott Brereton said “I have got a feeling we might see a replay of Percy Jones during the week”.
MORE NEWS: