Almanac Footy: The Melbourne Football Club-Recollections and Reflections (Part 4)

 

By the end of 1991 the Under 19s competition formerly known as the ‘Thirds’ up till 1960 was abolished and replaced in Victoria by the state-wide Under 18s competition which was to become known as The TAC Cup. Scott Nelson was the last Melbourne Under 19 Best and Fairest winner and Danny McCarthy booted 36 goals. There were some handy players in the Under 19s under the tutelage of Mark Cross with the likes of Neitz, Schwarz and Charles progressing through the ranks along with Paul Hopgood, Chris Sullivan and Darren Cuthbertson. Wayne Lamb booted 10 goals in the last home and away game versus Footscray to earn a spot in the finals but were comfortably defeated by Richmond at Princess Park 23.18.156 to 12.11.83 in the Elimination Final.

 

Mark Cross was a former Footscray player who played four games for the Dogs in 1974 when aged just 17. He went on to play at Williamstown in the VFA playing 74 games and was a member of its 1976 Premiership team. He moved to the Sunraysia League in 1980 and coached both Red Cliffs and Imperials where he steered them to three consecutive premierships in 1986, 1987 and 1988. After being named the Victorian Football Foundation senior coach of the year Mark was appointed Under 19s and reserves coach at Melbourne for the 1991 season. Senior coach John Northey had fought hard with the General Manager and Board to appoint former St Kilda coach Graeme Gellie in the newly created dual role but failed to convince the powers to be that Gellie was the perfect candidate. Swoop was none too pleased to say the least.

 

Mark was a hard task master and demanded nothing but commitment to the team above all else. If a player acted in any selfish way to the detriment of the team, he would deliver a most fearsome spray irrespective of your reputation. He was very hard on his players but was able to build a selfless team culture – the boys wanted to play for each other and Mark.

 

Around that time the club had recruited some talented Irish players in Niall Buckley, Tommy Grehan and Anthony Tohill. It would be fair to say that Mark was not a massive fan of the Irish experiment despite the success of Jim Stynes. He was of the view that there was plenty of home-grown talent in Victoria (particularly country Victoria) and that the cost and risk factor in developing players from the other side of the world was problematic.

 

Of the three players previously mentioned Anthony Tohill was the brightest prospect. Tohill was an outstanding junior player at Ulster and played in the All-Ireland Minor Championship winning Derry team in 1989. Through the club’s Irish recruiting network and Brother Tom McDonald, Tohill arrived in Australia and impressed with his athleticism, running ability and proficient skills. He was tall and courageous, and we felt he could develop into a hard-running wingman or on-baller. He was a very smart boy and was excelling in his studies at St Kevin’,s College. He had much to learn about reading the play and game style, but he was a genuine chance to develop into a senior player. Mark was particularly hard on him in my opinion, unfairly so. I think he wanted to prove a point. Mark and I had a good relationship and I told him what I thought. He was strong-willed Mark; a stubborn character who was unrelenting.

 

When Anthony Tohill decided to play a Gaelic game of football with a local Melbourne based club along side Jim Stynes near the end of the year, he badly broke his leg – that was the out-clause Mark needed to convince the club hierarchy to send Anthony and the others home  much to my displeasure.

 

Tohill returned to Ireland and became one of the most decorated players in the history of the game – too many honours to reference here. His sporting prowess extended to soccer where he played association football for Derry City. He was extended an invitation to Manchester United where he played reserves football during a two-week trial in 1995.

 

By 2010 Tohill was the coach of the Irish International Rules team and away from football became Chief Executive Officer of the Mid-Ulster District Council. His son Anton made his AFL debut for the Collingwood FC in 2021.

 

To this day I often think what might have been with Anthony Tohill.

 

 

Read more from Richard Griffiths HERE

 

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