Almanac Footy History: The `67 Grand Final

 

 

 

1967 Grand Final:

 

Richmond 16.18.114  d. Geelong 15.15.105

 

 

Dick Clay, Richmond: ’66 … St. Kilda beat Collingwood, we all went as a group at the MCG and Tommy said, “Righto boys, that’s where we want to be next year.”

 

Geelong stood out in ’67. Marshall, Goggin, Closter, Newland, Billy Ryan, Roy West, or course Farmer. They had a tribe of good players.

 

Francis Bouke, Richmond: That year, Royce emerged as a star, Kevin Bartlett was already a star, Graham Burgin was establishing himself. I was establishing myself, Sheedy …

 

Neville Crowe and Paddy Guinane and Roger Dean and Alan Richardson and Mike Patterson … Fred Swift, they’d come from the dark days. They gave us an experienced core, but none of us had ever played in finals before.

 

Dick Clay, Richmond: The week of the Grand Final, the build-up, after training I looked out and there’s people queuing up for tickets and it’s raining. They’ve got their tarpaulins over their head, a little bloody gas burner going, they’re having something to eat, a beer. These supporters are out there doing that for you. I’m thinking oh geeze, this is what VFL finals are all about.

 

Doug Wade, Geelong: Tom Hafey’s main thing was to get the ball, kick it long and then get everybody forward of the ball. They simply outnumbered the opposition.

 

Barry Richardson, Richmond: That classic mark Royce Hart took, drifting across the front, he was still so young, yet that day he was such a dominant player. I was standing there waiting for it as he’s leapt and gone straight across Peter Walker, thinking, ‘Jesus … ’

 

Doug Wade, Geelong: We kept with them all the match. Then, the Richmond defender, Freddy Swift, credit to him, mark the ball a good foot behind the goal-line. And rather than wait for the umpire to signal a Geelong goal, he just played on. Bluffed them. No goal.

 

Francis Bourke, Richmond: I don’t think Freddy knew whether he was in front of the line or behind, all he did was not give the umpire any chance.

 

Dick Clay, Richmond: I just say, “Look, I could see it quite clearly from the wing (laughs), I was only a hundred and sixty metres away and he definitely took it in front.”

 

Francis Bourke, Richmond: The ’67 loss hurt Geelong badly. But, we were on the improve as a side, and they were on the way down. Polly never played for Geelong again, John Sharrod went to the bush … two years later we played Geelong in a Semi Final and smashed them.

 

’67 was special because of the breakthrough year. Twenty-four years of nothing. All the long time supporters, you ask them now which one was the best and they’ll say, without doubt ’67.

 

 

These comments are taken from Matt Zurbo’s book Champions All. Read more about the book HERE.

 

 

Read more from Matt Zurbo HERE.

 

 

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