Almanac Footy: The Hopkins-Ellen Medal – A Call for Nominations

 

 

It’s one of my earliest footy memories.  L’il ‘opkins.  The pint-sized blond substitute, coming off the bench at half-time, snagging four opportunist goals to propel Carlton to an incredible victory in the 1970 Grand Final.  Ted Hopkins’ heroics that day are the stuff of legend, enhanced by the extraordinary fact that he played just one more VFL game after that famous day.  His career lasted a mere 29, largely forgettable, games.

 

Shane Ellen’s statistics are a little more impressive.  Sixty-five games over eight years at Footscray and Adelaide.  But he’d also be largely forgotten were it not for his famous 38th game – the 1997 Grand Final – where he was given a makeshift forward role in the absence of star full-forward, Tony Modra, and improbably contributed five goals to the Crows’ first Premiership victory.

 

The more I look into Grand Final history, the more I come across these sorts of stories.  Little-known players, in the right place at the right time. Mediocre journeymen seizing their moment. Young blokes forging their reputations against all expectations. Every Grand Final seems to have one.

 

Hopkins and Ellen are two of the best examples of these unlikely heroes.  So, at a time when the major awards are being given to an ever-narrower and more predictable group of star midfielders, it’s time to restore that old Aussie concept of giving the battler a chance to upstage the silvertails.  I hereby propose the concept of the Hopkins-Ellen Medal to be retrospectively awarded to unlikely stars in Grand Finals, players who defied logic, form, experience and their own playing limitations, to produce something fleetingly special on football’s biggest stage.  The eligibility criteria are deliberately vague.  It’s the vibe, really. My only strict rule is that in the spirit of lightning not striking twice in the one spot, no player can win this award more than once.

 

Obviously, Hopkins and Ellen are the nominees for those respective Grand Finals.  Below are some further nominations for Grand Finals during my lifetime and my reasoning.  But there are plenty of blanks.  It’s over to you to fill them.

 

I look forward to your contributions.

 

1964

 

1965 Ted Fordham.  OK, Fordham had a consistent career with Essendon through the 60s, but he was hardly John Coleman.  Seven goals in the Grand Final was a standout performance in a game full of much brighter stars.

 

1966

 

1967 John Ronaldson.  How could we Tiger fans forget Ronaldson’s two magnificent long goals in that thrilling last quarter? A stand-in for suspended ruckman Neville Crowe, Ronaldson played his role perfectly, upstaging the great Polly Farmer.

 

1968 Brian Kekovich. On a brutally windy day that made ball-handling and scoring incredibly difficult, the lesser-known Kekovich booted four of his team’s seven goals to set up a thrilling victory.

 

1969

 

1970 Ted Hopkins.  For all the reasons mentioned.

 

1971 Bob Keddie.  Hawthorn’s last-quarter hero, standing in for the heavily concussed Peter Hudson, kicking four goals as the Hawks surged home over the Saints.

 

1972

 

1973

 

1974 Robert McGhie.  Gets extra points for his cult figure status, but McGhie was rock-solid in defence for the Tigers, especially early, when Messrs Wade, Kekovich, Cable and co were threatening.

 

1975

 

1976

 

1977

 

1977 Replay

 

1978

 

1979 Peter Francis.  A good example of a football journeyman who had a patchy career at several clubs, but put it all together in Carlton’s slogging victory over Collingwood.

 

1980 Stephen Mount.  Played just 31 games over four seasons but slotted beautifully into the centre half-back role in the Tigers’ romp over Collingwood, allowing Jim Jess to go forward and the semi-fit David Cloke to lurk in the forward pocket.

 

1981

 

1982

 

1983 Colin Robertson.  Yes, I am allowing Norm Smith Medallists to win this award on the rare occasions where they meet the criteria. In a team laden with stars, Robertson struggled to hold a regular place in the Hawthorn lineup, but hit a purple patch late in 1983 that culminated in a superb Grand Final.

 

1984

 

1985

 

1986

 

1987

 

1988 Paul Abbott.  Had similar challenges to Robertson in breaking into this great Hawthorn side, but six goals in the Hawks’ massacre of Melbourne was Abbott’s finest hour.

 

1989 Dean Anderson.  Hawthorn was like a hydra this day.  No matter how many stars Geelong incapacitated, another couple would bob up.  The underrated Anderson gets the nod for his four crucial goals including Hawthorn’s 21st, when most of the team was, literally, out on their feet.

 

1990

 

1991 Stephen Lawrence. His co-ruckman, Paul Dear won the Norm Smith, but Lawrence was the dominant ruckman on the day, at a time where this looked to be a weakness in Hawthorn’s lineup.  Lawrence played nearly 100 more games after this day, but never quite reached the levels of his superb 1991 finals series.

 

1992 Tony Evans.  A classic example of one who got under the opposition’s guard, Evans’ three goals as a small forward/rover were critical in the Eagles’ inaugural Premiership triumph.

 

1993 David Calthorpe. Plenty of contenders from Essendon’s “Baby Bombers” lineup, but I’m going with Calthorpe as he burst onto the scene in the second half of ’93, producing a livewire performance in the Grand Final, including a 60-metre bomb that broke Carlton hearts just as they were mounting a comeback.  Played another 100 games after this day but never quite lived up to the expectations.

 

1994

 

1995

 

1996 Glen Freeborn.  Important goals in the second quarter ignited North Melbourne when they trailed Sydney by four goals.  Hardly an obscure player but very much a lesser light in this star-studded lineup.

 

1997 Shane Ellen.  For all the reasons mentioned.

 

1998

 

1999

 

2000 Paul Barnard.  A classic journeyman made-good story, Barnard’s energetic, aggressive approach fitted perfectly into the brilliant Essendon lineup of 2000.  An equal game-high four goals in the Grand Final was a standout on a day where the team performance was top quality across the board.

 

2001

 

2002

 

2003

 

2004 Toby Thurstans.  Three goals from the lanky backup ruckman/forward was a real left-field bonus for Port Adelaide.

 

2005 Lewis Roberts-Thomson.  Although LRT went on to become a long-term regular in the Sydney lineup, he was only in his third season in 2005 and was regarded as a bit flaky and unreliable at the time.  But put it all together in this defensive slug-fest, at one stage figuring in Norm Smith Medal considerations.

 

2006

 

2007

 

2008 Stuart Dew.  The story of Dew’s revival as a player in 2008 gives him multiple bonus points, but that takes nothing away from his 19 possession game and critical two goals late in the third quarter, the period of Grand Finals I now refer to as “Stuey Dew time”.

 

2009

 

2010

 

2010 Replay

 

2011

 

2012 Mitch Morton.  OK, I may be biased here, as Morton was an ex-Tiger and I was pretty familiar with his limitations, but Morton stood up in one of the great Grand Finals and contributed two telling goals.

 

2013 Brian Lake. Another rare Norm Smith/Hopkins Ellen recipient. See Colin Robertson.

 

2014 Will Langford.  Twenty-one possessions and three goals in just his 20th game marked Langford as a huge prospect for the Hawks, especially given his famous surname and pedigree.  Unfortunately, his 50-odd games over the next four seasons didn’t really live up to the hype.

 

2015

 

2016

 

2017 Jack Graham.  Who else could it be but the 5th gamer, slotting a game-high three goals and tagging Adelaide’s star, Rory Sloane, out of the game?  The only mark against Graham for this award might be the outstanding career that he is steadily building.

 

2018

 

2019 Marlion Pickett.  Again, how could you overlook a Grand Final debutant, who figures in Norm Smith calculations with 22 touches and an ice-cool goal?

 

2020

 

2021 Luke Jackson.  As much as Max Gawn is rightly hyped for his standout ruck performance and captaincy, it cannot be overstated how important Jackson’s backup support has been in 2021.  This was particularly evident in the Grand Final where Jackson’s ruckwork and remarkable ball handling and agility for a big bloke were telling during Melbourne’s comeback.

 

 

We’ll do our best to publish two books in the lead-up to Christmas 2021. The Tigers (Covid) Almanac 2020  and the 2021 edition to celebrate the Dees’ magnificent premiership season(title is up for discussion at the moment!). These books will have all the usual features – a game by game account of the Tigers and Demons season – and will also include some of the best Almanac writing from these two Covid winters. Enquiries HERE

 

To return to the www.footyalmanac.com.au  home page click HERE

 

Our writers are independent contributors. The opinions expressed in their articles are their own. They are not the views, nor do they reflect the views, of Malarkey Publications.

 

Do you enjoy the Almanac concept?
And want to ensure it continues in its current form, and better? To help keep things ticking over please consider making your own contribution.

 

Become an Almanac (annual) member – CLICK HERE
One-off financial contribution – CLICK HERE
Regular financial contribution (monthly EFT) – CLICK HERE