TOPIC:

dogman wrote: Good topic here, apart from the lack of success factor.

Must have my say hey??

Benny Vigona was my all time favourite player. He to me was what I wanted to be as skilled footballer. Both sides, do it with ease, snap goals from 40m and sell the baulk / dummy better than anyone. He looked as though he was barely trying yet no one could lay a glove on him. Looked like he was made of rubber.

Even though I was only born in '74 I have great memories of the footy at freo oval in that golden period for SF from '79-'84.

My most vivid memory was watching Benny sell the dummy to 3 Claremont players who were running at him on the boundary line. It was in front of the old grandstand where I used to sit with the old man and his mates standing on the concrete below. The bloke with the red number 8 (which was so hard to find by the way for your jumper when I was a kid . . . had to get an orange one and colour it in with red texta can you believe??)picked up the ball with one hand just before the line and turned to see 3 Cl fellas line up to get him. Within a flash he switched the ball from his right hand to left and back to right hanging the ball out like bait which all 3 Tiger boys took one after another. As they all doubled back for another shot at Benny he casually screwed the ball over his left shoulder from 40m and kicked a snagger and saunted off like it was a training drill.

Brilliant evasive skills and footy smarts.

I know that one of the Cl boys was one of the Krakouers and from memory Blackwell but that a bit hazy.

Maurice rioli was just all pure class in all forms of the game in all states in the middle of the ground for a long time. He was the best player I saw for continued excellence in the WAFL, VFL and State of Origin games but Vigona caught my attention as a yound bloke.

As for the GF's in that era we definately underachieved. '79 blew out in the end but we fell away when ot counted. '80 obviously great. '81 was the one that we ruined ourself by kicking 12.23. The fights at the start didn't do us much either and gave CL a few cheap goals and robbed some from us to get a flying start. Bad kicking cost us there. Probably '83 when we dominated the year and I think finished on top was a bad one as well. Really should have made another GF and won it but didn't happen.

I'd say you would take 2 flags and be satisfied, 3 flags and it's a great run and brilliant period of SF history and if we had of got 4 flags there magnificent.

I know we won it in 1970 but if you go from 1975 to 1996 (we won it in 1997) it reads like this.

GF - 1979, 1980, 1981, 1989, 1992
Other finals series - 1976 (2nd), 1978 (4th), 1983 (1st), 1988 (3rd), 1990 (3rd), 1993 (4th), 1995 (3rd)
Premierships - 1980

Lots of finals for 1 flag in that time hey?

No doubt about it, gee if your only born in 74, you must of not even have started at primary school for the 79 GF , must of been 5! Im a fair bit older so remember 79 very well.

The amazing this about Benny was his ability to get out of trouble, he could weave through a pack baulk, sell, the dummy and leave the opp for dead. as you say his kicking was supreme.

Our return for finals effort was to put it mildly - terrible, as your figures show thorugh that era, considering the recruits we had and the teams dominance, I maintain there was something about Subiaco Oval that we just never adjusted too, our record there was poor in finals., Brownie and his blow ups didnt help either although he certainly was a charismatic figure.

Tiger of old wrote:

Bazza wrote:

Cesspit wrote: Pity that with all those stars you only won one premiership in that era. Perhaps they underachieved. I'm pretty sure you were favourites in the '79 and '81 grand finals, and then didn't make the grand final at all in 82,83 or 84 still with a strong side.

Don't worry I know I am in no position to critisize being a Perth supporter, but it's just an observation.

There is no doubt about it at all, we underachieved with the team we had.

should of been 3/3 or at least 2/3.

I put the fault on Brownie, he single handedly stuffed up 79, the blue with Jacko set up the fail, the team was unsettled on the day, Brownies approach and tactics were all wrong.

1981 was highly winnable without a doubt, once again Brownie went out to start a fight rather than play highly skilled footy, things got away from them, but inaccurate kicking was the killer in the end, non the less the opening scenes are part of WAFL legend.

by 82 the team was breaking up, 83 was the most frustrating year, dominated the home and aways and went out in straight sets.

by 84 the era was over.

The blue with jacko in 79? what's that story?

The stories conflict but I asked Jacko once and he told me Brownie hated his guts( exact words), ego just too big, there had been some problems , apparently Brownie approached the team on the eve of the game and asked them to vote whether Jack should play, and they voted no, some say this story is BS, including Jacko who says it was entirely Brownie.

And your 100% correct re Maurice and Benny, Maurice was the best I have ever seen.

i expect East Fremantle to have your measure. Better coached and better talent over at Shark park.

astro wrote: i expect East Fremantle to have your measure. Better coached and better talent over at Shark park.

I would of agreed with you last year, however EF severally underachieved , cant see them making much impact this year,

severely under achieved they missed the four on the last game of the season?....had no ruckman of any note.....saw practically nothing of their high impact AFL players from 2012 in Griffen, Dalziell, Stevens, Menagola and Brown.....blooded over 10 guys, had no tall forward, lost their main goal kicker from 2012 in BOB early on and still were in the thick of things come the final round of the year......

the only bad game EF played all year was the middle derby.....they fancied themselves and got rightfully spanked...paid for it....they had the 2nd best % come end the of the home and away games.....finished 2nd in the Foxtel as well thus played in two comps....not positive to finish out of the four...but at least their season was not done by round 8 as what SF/Subi and Peels season were....but hey I see your point Bazza, finishing 5th after a GF match the season before aint that hot....but TBH EF played above themselves most of the season.....glad they blooded so many youngsters as they did without having their season cutailed so early on like some other clubs......

That's right BOB took his bat and ball didn't he.
You forgot to mention having to play Duffy. That was a setback.

Cesspit BOB got injured early on, got disheartened and tried to find his footy mojo in a lower league.....winning a flag at Pinjarra and being BOG plus seeing his brother win a Sandover obviously has got his competitve juices flowing again....for how long who knows?......BOB is a match winner on his day.....just ask the SD boys in the 2012
Prelim......

.as for Duffy......another enigmatic sort......Freo has decided they want get more out of him playing him up field.....stupid move TBH.....the guy is HFF and a goal kicker.....not AFL quality but definitely dangerous enough at the lower level........no doubt him leaving PFC has left a bitter taste in your mouth......no probs there, imagine how Cl feel seeing all 3 Mortons seeking easy game time at Perth.........that's what worries me about those Morton boys always seeking the easy option......and their dad was a good honest no fuss sort too!

Yes you may be right about the Mortons. Jarryd showed a bit last season from a late start. We'll have to wait and see. Mitch had to survive the Sydney so called No Dickheads policy. Although that has surely gone out the window with the recruiting of Franklin.

Cesspit wrote: Yes you may be right about the Mortons. Jarryd showed a bit last season from a late start. We'll have to wait and see. Mitch had to survive the Sydney so called No Dickheads policy. Although that has surely gone out the window with the recruiting of Franklin.

Well said Cess although that puts u at odds with Ms Sophie Monk who reckons he's 'uber cool' which just about says it all. The Buddy story will leave the Essendon saga for dead when and if it finally breaks...watch this space as they say....as for the Mortons if they had of landed at SD after the player losses we've encountered it would not be installing one bit of confidence or hope in me at all. Hope Demons supporters aren't pinning their hopes on the 3 to lead them to success, although I wish Dees supporters well, they deserve some success after a long long wait.

SF have an intra club game (Freeze that's a game between team mates, they split up into 2 teams and play each other =) and we have 2 prac games v Cl @ freo at night and Peel down @ Mandurah.

If we can keep fit and recruit one more surprise midfielder I look forward to the year.