I sat down on a Virgin flight to Adelaide, for the Geelong-Crows game, with every intention of putting in an hour and a half of solid, kid-free, uninterrupted, can-in-hand reading when a bloke in a sleeveless Cats jumper sat down next to me. He was very friendly; wouldn’t let me buy a beer. He was a fair dinkum fan and a classic all-round sports lover. He’d raised his bat at Commonwealth Golf Club the day before and went on to post a very healthy total (in tough conditions). His name: Gary Caulfield.
We talked a lot of Geelong and of his life in Indonesia and south-east Asia working in advertising.
We were both expecting an excellent game, and a solid performance from the Cats. (This was pre-Collingwood and pre-Carlton)
The highlight of the flight – apart from Gary – was the chuckle at seeing the Iron Maiden jumbo jet (one of those old ones with the bubble up the front) parked on the Adelaide tarmac. What a classic!
Gary went his way, I found P. Flynn and we proceeded to enjoy the Cats brilliant victory before catching up with Roger Wills and his mates at the Old Lion.
Who knows where Gary and his posse wound up – but they were in for a big one.
Soon after returning to Melbourne, this email turned up.
Dear John
As I was watching Mumford and Stevie J go to work on our beloved Cats recently (unfortunately), it struck me to assess just how many of our Boys are currently lining up against us at the moment
And here’s my findings below, which makes interesting reading.
So imagine this team which includes 10 premiership players ( exactly 50% ) :
B: T. Hunt S. Thompson Hamling
HB: Kelly M. Brown Laidler
C: Varcoe Simpkin Jansen
HF: Stevie J Walker Chappy
F: Stokes Pods West
R: Mumford Ablett Christensen
INT: Simpson Gore (there may be others)
Gary
Yes, Gary, that is the nature of modern footy.
you’d finish last. Taylor Hunt is in this team.
16th PW – Josh Walker also in team
Like to play them off against the Freo discards.
Isn’t Pods retired ?
Coach; Bomber Thompson ?
Glen!
Nice to see Jonothan Simpkin there. Always played well for the Hawks when he got a chance. Just didn’t get enough chances. And I suspect he’s the only player to play in a VFL Premiership side one week and an AFL Premiership side the next, as he did in 2013.
Think the Cats did the same with Stephen King on 09
Wouldn’t call Ablett a ‘discard’, (unless that’s the term for chasing the bucks and leaving for the north!)
sean
Hmmm. Really wonder how they’d go against the once were GWS team too. Hunt J could be emergency for both teams.