AFL match wreckers: 12 finals that didn’t go to plan
IN A season of spectacular upsets, the one certainty about the 2017 finals series is expect the unexpected. Nothing is ever a given in September — even the weather. We uncover some classic finals boilovers.
AFL
Don't miss out on the headlines from AFL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
In a season of spectacular upsets, the one certainty about the 2017 finals series is expect the unexpected.
Nothing is ever a given in the month of September — even the weather. So we’ve gone back through the vault to uncover some of the classic finals boilovers.
More footy: Danger v Dusty crazy stats showdown
1. MAGPIE HEIST
1958 Grand Final
Collingwood d Melbourne by 18 points
Lou Richards dubbed Melbourne “the hottest favourite since Phar Lap” before the 1958 Grand Final.
Collingwood was desperate to protect its four-in-a-row flag record, but not even coach Phonse Kyne gave them much of a chance. The Demons were so confident they organised a cake for the celebration dinner, inscribed: “Premiers, 1958, four-in-a-row.”
Melbourne had won the three previous flags (1955-57) and had beaten Collingwood in nine of their past 10 clashes. They had even defeated the Magpies by 45 points in the second semi-final. At quarter-time, the game looked over, with Melbourne 17 points up.
But as the team headed to their positions for the second term, stand-in skipper Murray Weideman turned to teammate Brian ‘Hooker’ Harrison and said: “Let’s see who we can collect.”
The pair physically took it up to Melbourne, and as the Demons tried to retaliate, the Magpies staged the biggest Grand Final heist in history, winning by 18 points.
2. THE BULLDOGS’ QUADDIE
2016 elimination final, semi final preliminary final, Grand Final
Western Bulldogs d West Coast by 47, d Hawthorn by 23, d GWS by 6, d Sydney by 22
This wasn’t just a Grand Final fairytale; it was a month long state of nirvana for Western Bulldogs fans.
Not once, not twice, not three times, but four times Luke Beveridge’s 2016 side produced finals upsets of epic proportions. As a collective, it was worthy of a Hollywood blockbuster, even if the 2017 sequel flopped at the box office.
The first was against West Coast in Perth, armed with the return of key players. The second ended Hawthorn’s four-in-a-row dreams. The third was in a nailbiting away preliminary final against GWS.
The last was a Grand Final victory over Sydney, ending a 62-year premiership drought with some remarkable moments including Beveridge putting his medal around Bob Murphy’s neck, Tom Boyd’s last-term towering goal, the heroics of Dale Morris and Liam Picken, and Jason Johannisen’s line-breaking run.
3. MACHINE WRECKED
1929 semi final
Richmond d Collingwood by 62
Someone tried to run a sweepstake on when Collingwood would lose its first game in the 1929 season after the famed “Machine” team won a streak of games early in the 1929 season.
The idea was shelved when no one took up the option — the Magpies’ were deemed invincible. The club went on to win every match of the home-and-away season.
Then, out of the blue, Richmond produced one of the great finals shocks in a semi-final, flattening some of Collingwood’s best players, including Syd Coventry and George Clayden, and going on to a stunning 62-point win. One of the newspaper headlines summed up the shock: “The Machine Wrecked”, saying Jock McHale’s team had been “smashed to smithereens.”
As part of the Challenge Finals series, Collingwood got another chance, and the Magpies would exact their revenge with a 29-point win in the flag decider.
4. LAST TO FIRST
1916 semi final, final, Grand Final
Fitzroy d Collingwood by 6, d Carlton by 23, d Carlton by 29
Just as the Bulldogs did a century later, Fitzroy had a fairytale finals series in 1916 — with an extraordinary twist. The Maroon — as the Lions were known then — were one of only four teams in the VFL that year, given Australia’s commitment to World War One. Fitzroy won the first two games of the season and then played out a thrilling draw.
But they lost the next nine matches of an abbreviated home-and-away season, leaving them a clear last on the ladder.
But each of the four teams got the chance to play in the finals, though the Maroons looked to be making up the numbers.
Somehow they defeated Collingwood in the semi final and then had to beat Carlton twice to take out the flag. From last to premiers in a month is a record that no club will ever replicate.
5. UNDERDOG DOUBLE
1999 preliminary final
Carlton d Essendon by 1
The Essendon-Jeff Kennett double on preliminary final day, 1999, looked to be one of the best multiple bets you could ever imagine. Few teams had been as favoured as the Bombers were that day.
And Kennett was heavily tipped to retain government in the Victorian State Election. But by the end of the day all sense of certainty had evaporated.
The Bombers struggled to shake off the determined Blues. Those in the crowd thought it was only a matter of time before Essendon took control. It looked that way in the dying seconds when Dean Wallis charged towards goal.
However, a desperate lunge from Fraser Brown stopped him, and the Blues held on by a point. It later emerged Jeff Kennett had lost to Steve Bracks in one of the great election night shocks.
6. THAT’S WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT
2008 Grand Final
Hawthorn d Geelong by 26
Geelong had lost only one game going into the 2008 Grand Final. They were already being labelled as one of the greatest teams of the modern era, having won the previous year’s Grand Final by a record margin, and back-to-back flags seemed assured.
However, someone forget to tell the young, inexperienced but determined Hawks and their emerging coach Alastair Clarkson.
The Cats kicked themselves out of the contest early and the unsocial Hawks made them pay. There were so many great moments in this upset — Clarkson’s “Kill the Shark” pre-game address; Cam Mooney’s halftime miss; Stuart Dew and Cyril Rioli’s third term cameos; Luke Hodge’s courage in playing with a rib injury to win his first Norm Smith Medal; and Shane Crawford’s “That’s What I’m Talking About” comment as he received his long-awaited premiership medal.
7. CHOKED AT THE CATTERY
2013 qualifying final
Fremantle d Geelong by 15
There used to be three certainties ... death, taxes, and Geelong winning at the venue formerly known as Kardinia Park. Freo changed all that in 2013.
Twelve months earlier, the Dockers upset Geelong in an elimination final at the MCG. But no one expected a repeat performance in 2013 when the Cats were scheduled to play their first — and so far only — final at their home ground. Pre-game, Cats CEO Brian Cook called it “the biggest national sporting event in Geelong”.
By game’s end, though, Ross Lyon had enacted a game plan that squeezed the life out of the Cats, choking them in terms of space. The Kardinia Park crowd was silenced like few times before.
8. POWER FADE
2002 qualifying final
Collingwood d Port Adelaide by 13 points
No Nathan Buckley, no Collingwood ... no worries. As the fourth-placed Magpies prepared to travel to Adelaide to take on top side Port Adelaide at AAMI Stadium, the absence of their best player and the massive home ground advantage meant no one was tipping them.
It was the Magpies’ first final since 1994, too. A small contingent of fans travelled across to the game, including the parents of Paul Licuria and Anthony Rocca, who car pooled.
But the pressure was applied to the Power, with the Magpies turning in one of the biggest upsets in recent history, turning the finals upside. Licuria had 40 disposals in a superb display and Ben Johnson laid a game-defining tackle in the goal square to stop a certain Peter Burgoyne goal.
The win pushed Collingwood deep into the finals, and they would ultimately make the Grand Final. Port Adelaide’s reputation for choking in finals was heightened.
9. NO-NAME CATS SINK THE BLUES
1994 semi final
Geelong d Carlton by 33
It seemed as if a black cat had strolled ominously across Geelong’s path in the hours leading into the semi-final clash with premiership fancies Carlton in 1994.
Michael Mansfield had been suspended and late withdrawals of stars Garry Hocking, Paul Couch and Mark Bairstow made those Cats fans who had made the trip up the highway wishing they had make a U-turn at Werribee.
Carlton’s odds shortened considerably, the undermanned Cats were expected to be mauled. But someone forgot to tell Malcolm Blight who conjured up a Waverley Park miracle.
The lesser known Cats rose to the occasion, the more experienced ones performed well too. Gary Ablett kicked six goals, new AFL football operations manager Steve Hocking played one of his best games, Liam Pickering had a fine game, and the likes of Leigh Tudor, Aaron Lord, David Mensch and Shane Breuer rose to the occasion.
10. CROW BLOW
2005 qualifying final
St Kilda d Adelaide by 8
Even the most ambitious of Saints’ fans had a sense of foreboding ahead of the 2005 qualifying final clash with Adelaide at AAMI Stadium.
The “Crows-bots”, as Neil Craig’s team was sometimes called, had finished on top of the ladder and the Saints faced a considerable hurdle at one of the most inhospitable grounds in the country.
But against the odds, Grant Thomas’ Saints produced a masterclass performance on the road. Robert Harvey had one of his greatest matches, racking up 31 disposals and kicking three goals to lift his team over the line.
The win left St Kilda with renewed hope it could end its premiership drought. But a fortnight later the Swans turned in another finals to knock them off in the preliminary final — and would go on to win their first premiership in 72 years.
11. EXTRA TIME UPSET
2007 semi final
Collingwood d West Coast by 19 points (after extra time)
This was one of the great finals wins on the road. Collingwood hadn’t beaten West Coast at Subiaco in 15 years when they took the reigning premiers on in the 2007 semi final.
Few tipped them, and even those who did, jumped off the bandwagon when the Eagles shot out to a 23-point lead in the third quarter.
But the underdogs kept coming. When Eagles coach John Worsfold rested Darren Glass for a few minutes, it allowed Anthony Rocca to kick a couple of crucial goals. The last term was a classic.
The ball was deep in Collingwood’s attack when the final siren sounded with scores locked together. The Magpies had been brave, but no one expected them to be the team that would finish full of running. They kicked away from the Eagles in extra time to end the home side’s season.
12. HAWKS’ SUBI JUBILATION
1991 qualifying final
Hawthorn d West Coast by 23
West Coast earned the right for the first final played outside Victoria after a dominant regular season saw them finish on top after 19 wins, including the first 13 without a blemish.
Few thought Hawthorn could challenge them at Subiaco. But the Hawks, with a host of fresh faces mixed in with some of their long-time heroes, changed the shape of the whole finals series with this significant upset victory on the road.
Jason Dunstall kicked four goals, Stephen Lawrence was outstanding in the ruck, and the victory meant the Eagles squandered an opportunity for any more home finals. The teams ended up meeting in the Grand Final with the Hawks triumphant again.
Gather Round: Crows open again, Ken, Hawks set for blockbuster
One of the biggest moments of the AFL season came after the Power-Hawks final when Ken Hinkley told Jack Ginnivan he wouldn’t be flying to Sydney. Now we know when the rematch is coming.
Ralph: The key Dees developments that could save Goodwin’s job
Melbourne’s public review said it was capable of playing finals, but their game plan had to be refined, now the work begins for Simon Goodwin after a tumultuous 31 months, writes Jon Ralph.