IT’S 75 years this month since Carlton rover Sir Frederick Stafford sunk Essendon by one glorious point with his trusty left foot in the dying seconds of the 1947 Grand Final.
To think that history would repeat in Sunday’s landmark Carlton-Essendon AFLW fixture at Port Melbourne’s ETU Stadium.
The Blues’ capacity to lock the footy in and protect that solitary one-point lead in the frantic final 30 seconds of the inaugural contest with the Bombers prompted Carlton supporters to cast their minds back to those other meritorious one-point wins at the arch enemy’s expense.
One such fan is John Green, the son of former Carlton footballer Jack Green, who in 2012 shared a truly unique tale relating to his part in the ’47 decider.
“During the 1936 season, Jack retired from football with a badly damaged knee, but he was soon back on the football scene as a broadcaster with Norman Banks on 3KZ,” John told this reporter.
“I well recall, as a nine year-old, sitting in the broadcast box at the MCG on the afternoon of 27 September 1947. I was under strict orders to not make a sound whilst I watched the Carlton-Essendon Grand Final.
“It was an exciting match with Essendon one point ahead at quarter time and 11 ahead at both half and three quarter-time. The last quarter was very exciting, particularly when Fred Davies goaled, bringing Carlton within six points. Shortly thereafter ‘snozzly’ Garby kicked a goal and the crowd erupted, only to be quickly silenced when it was found that Ken Hands had crossed the boundary line when passing it to Ray.
“With just two minutes to go, Fred Davies - who had kicked four goals - kicked for goal but scored only a point. Carlton was now five points down with less than a minute to the bell with the ball out of bounds near the Carlton goal. On the throw-in, Ken Baxter grabbed the ball and passed it to Freddy Stafford who, half turning, screwed a left foot kick over his shoulder and scored the winning goal.
“It was then that I made my radio debut by shouting ‘HOORAY’ in the broadcasting box.”
Forty years after Stafford’s heroics, Carlton posted another meritorious one-point win over Essendon. It happened out at windswept Tullamarine-like Waverley, when the Blues retained the one-point lead earned at the final change. The Blues got over the line in no small part due to Paul Meldrum's goal in the later stages of the final quarter – and Meldrum would later poll an astounding 15 votes after only eight rounds in the Brownlow Medal count of that year.
But the story would not be complete of course without reference to the 1999 preliminary final, when Anthony Koutoufides “ripped Essendon’s heart out” to quote Seven’s match-day commentator Gerard Healy, on the same day Steve Bracks shocked the incumbent Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett at the polls.
Sir Fraser Brown is of course lauded by Carlton fans the world over for executing the tackle of the century on Dean Wallis with half a minute left on the clock to get his team over the line.
The following is ‘The Browndog’s’ own take on preliminary final day 1999, which always makes for great reading.
On siren time:
All I can remember is the elation. I’ve never felt that elation ever in sport. Ever. And that’s Grand Finals included. I’ve never felt the way I felt at the end of that game. We were the underdogs and when you win like that … Christ almighty.
You might have seen that photo on siren time. I was screaming at the sky. I don’t think I was saying much. Only screaming. That was fair dinkum elation. To feel that way was amazing. That was the day [Jeff] Kennett got the arse too.
Whenever you play Essendon or Collingwood, and to a lesser degree Richmond, you lift another cog. Anyone who’s played for Carlton should know that. And when you lift another cog, anything can happen.
On comparisons with the 1995 Grand Final victory:
In the ’95 Grand Final I was injured, but I knew it wasn’t going to cost anyone because I just knew the feeling around was “See you later”. There was no doubt we would win in ’95, and by half time we had that Grand Final won. But the ’99 prelim was a different kettle of fish. We all had to work for it, and it was great to have a win like that. To win by one point like that and be involved … well … I can’t describe it really.
I remember the crowd too. Seeing my missus and everyone else in the crowd just freaking out. It was phenomenal, phenomenal stuff.
On the match-winning tackle on Wallis:
I remember seeing him [Wallis] taking the mark and coming at me. Nothing against him or anything, but I saw him take someone on before, so I anticipated which way he would dodge. And I anticipated the right way, locked him in . . .
I was airborne when I tackled him, and I was confident as I could be of holding him in. In my brain I was thinking “I’ll get him, I’ll get him, I’ll get him”, don’t worry about that. You wouldn’t be playing otherwise, would you? If someone’s running at you, are you going to say “I don’t know whether I’m going to hold him or not?” It’s “I’ll f…ing hold him or I won’t be here next week”.
It was almost as if I’d seen a replay before I grabbed him. I just knew which way he was going to go.
On the legacy:
I don’t know how many times I’ve been asked by people, whether in business, in sport, or at the pub, about that moment. The majority of them are Essendon supporters who say “You bastard. You cost us the 1999 Grand Final”, and it’s still lingering.
They thought they were home and hosed to go all the way of course, and they would have beaten North (in the Grand Final) for sure. I’m going to say that now, aren’t I?
You then go and ask a few true Carlton supporters who have been through the run of the mill, and I know that while there isn’t as much elation as in winning a Grand Final, seeing that game from start to finish still blows them away.
