Almanac Local Footy: The Kat Trick

 

 

One of the reasons we love footy is that it can give rise to the most amazing stories.  No doubt that is one of the reasons for this site.

There are sometimes days when sporting contests can produce the most extraordinary outcomes.

Days when a mix of determination, skill, emotion, destiny and good fortune combine to produce a result that was thought unlikely before the event, always allowing for the old coaching advocation in football that when it’s eighteen against eighteen you always have a chance.

And if that unforeseen outcome happens to occur on a day of greater moment – say in a clash between great rivals, or in a grand final, or even better, where it’s both, then that result may be particularly joyous and memorable, destined to be long talked about by those who were part of the magical day.

This is the story of how one such outcome occurred this very year.

But not in the AFL or one of the major state leagues.

But far up in the north west of Western Australia in the North Pilbara Football league.

You might not have heard of that one. It spans some of the major coastal towns near some of the major iron ore mines in the red dirt of the Pilbara region. Dampier (remember Red Dog?), Karratha, Wickham, Port Hedland.

Not many players make their way from the NPFL to the AFL but Dean Cox was one who did, from one of the league’s power house teams the Dampier Sharks, via East Perth in the WAFL.

But what happened on grand final day in the NPFL this year provides one of the great country footy stories; well, actually one of the great footy stories.

One of the great rivals to the Dampier Sharks is the Karratha Kats.

Back in 2022 the Sharks and Kats played out a heart-stopping grand final with the Sharks triumphant by a single point – 52 to 51.

The two teams met again in the decider in 2023, but this time the Sharks took the flag by 18 points.

The desire for redemption was starting to burn strongly in the Kats but they couldn’t make the grand final in 2024, won once again by the powerful Sharks, this time beating the Kats’ cross-town rivals, the Karratha Falcons by 15 points.

This was something of a Sharks dynasty and someone would have to do something remarkable to end it.

The first step for the Kats was to appoint Jackson Ramsay as the coach of the club in 2023 when, like many young West Australians heading to the mining towns, he moved to Karratha for work.

Jackson had been an outstanding junior footballer, drafted by Collingwood with pick 38 in the 2012 AFL draft. He played 17 games in 5 seasons, never getting a serious shot at the big time with serious shin injuries and then a ruptured ACL. He returned to WA and became a star player with East Perth in the WAFL, becoming captain of the Royals. In 2022 when the Covid and injury-hit West Coast Eagles were down to 22 players and allowed a list of top-up players, Ramsay was one of those who accepted an offer to be on the list (see my 2022 piece on this site, What if Declan Mountford makes his Eagles debut but nobody knew?) although he was ultimately not called upon.

Other AFL and WAFL players who headed north to work on the mines played in the North Pilbara League. Blaine Boekhorst from Carlton and Ricky Carey from Swan Districts played with Dampier in 2025.

It is consequently a pretty serious country league with a high standard of footy.

Another of the joys of football are the settings in which it is played.

Games are played across the land in remarkable places with marvellous and varied backgrounds; snow capped mountains, tall trees older than a time before Marngrook was first played on the land, and ovals by rivers and oceans.

The North Pilbara grand final is played at Windy Ridge Oval in Dampier, aka Shark Park, home of the Sharks. It is an oasis of green amid the ubiquitous red dirt, lined with sentinel palms.

 

The beautiful outlook from Windy Ridge Oval, home of the Dampier Sharks on grand Final day 2025 (photo: Rob Mazza)

 

The oval sits on the north western ridge of the continent with the vast Indian ocean stretching away to Bali just over 1000 kilometres directly north. Perth, 1530 kilometres south, is further away.

Because of the year round high temperatures, most NPFL senior games are played at night, so the games at Shark Park are usually preceded by the tropical sun sinking into the ocean, a glorious setting for football.

 

The sun sets over the Indian Ocean at Dampier on grand final day. Seniors up next. The view from Windy Ridge (Photo: Rob Mazza)

 

This year, the grand finals were scheduled for September 13 at Windy Ridge.

The Dampier Sharks were in the reserves and senior grand finals, and, much as usual, were expected to win. They had won their way into the senior grand final with a qualifying  win over the Falcons and their opponents, the Karratha Kats, had had to win an elimination  final over Port Hedland Rovers and the derby preliminary final against the Falcons.

The Kats and the Sharks had shared the wins over the regular season, so the Kats sensed that they might finally have a chance to atone for their earlier grand final losses at the hands, rather the fins, of the Sharks. But the game was at the Sharks’ home ground. And they knew how to win these things as demonstrated by their taking the last four flags in a row.

But there was another interesting feature of this grand final day. The Kats were participating in all three games to be played on the day. The women’s team – never before premiers – were playing first against Wickham Wolves, and the Kats seconds were also playing the Sharks for the flag. There had never been a day in the league when one team had won all three premierships.

And as the glorious warm and sunny day wore on, the potential for a blue and white-wash result remained alive. The women took the flag from the Wolves by 54 points; the Kats reserves beat the Sharks by 13 points. The sun went down. The excitement grew. The two great rivals went at it under lights.

 

Fans settle in for the big one; Catherine “Cat” Mazza, James Mazza (sometime Kat) and, in the Kat kit, Jess Allan (Premiership Kat) (Photo: Rob Mazza)

 

The Sharks got the early edge but were a little inaccurate, leading 2.5 to 2.1 at the first break. The Kats turned it on to lead by nine – 5.4 to 3.7 at the half. “Bad kicking is bad football” some Sharks fans were muttering.

 

Half time at the football in the GF at Shark Park (‘all the players are eating their oranges’) (photo: Rob Mazza)

 

But normal Shark service was resumed in the “premiership quarter” with Dampier leading by 13 – 7.11 to 6.4 with one quarter left.

Coach Ramsay implored his Kats for one final effort and it came, as they edged closer. But it was attrition. The two teams desperately fought every contest, neither giving an inch.

With just over three minutes left, the Sharks were still up by 2 goals. A loose contested ball was won by the Kats at half forward and Brodie Terima kicked truly from just inside 50. Six points the margin: 9.11 to 9.5.

But with a minute remaining the Sharks were still ahead by one straight kick  and the ball was tossed in at their attacking 50. The Sharks won the ball and kicked towards goal but a spoil, a pick up, a handball,  a second hand off and a kick forward found Nelson White over the back with no one between him and the goals. With 30 seconds on the clock and whilst being tackled by a desperate Dampier defender he let fly and the ball went through on the bounce to tie the scores up at 65 each. The Kats fans were delirious. But the ball went back to the centre. In the throw up there was an infringement as the siren sounded. The ball was handed to the Sharks ruckman on the centre line but his kick, obviously enough, fell well short. Scores remained locked.

No one was too sure what was to happen next but the word went around there was to be five minutes played each way to determine the premiers for 2025.

Players were tiring and sore but the contest was fierce. For four and a half minutes into the first period there was no further score. Then with seconds remaining, Kats defender Corby Wellington won a free kick forty metres out. He kicked truly as the siren sounded to end the first period of extra time. Kats were in front for the first time since early in the third quarter. Ends were reversed. Five minutes to play.

Within the first minute of second extra time, the Sharks had found Ricky Carey at centre half forward. He kicked from the 50 metre line and the ball soared into the still night sky straight through the middle. Scores level once again.

Combat resumed but neither team could get close enough to score. Two minutes left. The Sharks attacked but the ball went out at their attacking 50. The Sharks took the ball on the throw-in but could not find a way through and a holding the ball free was awarded to the Kats’ Cann Wilson at half back. He immediately speared the ball forward to Matt Harbeck at the wing. Those with memories of the 2018 AFL grand final could immediately see McGovern to Vardy. Harbeck kicked to half forward and it looked like Wade Rumble had marked (Liam Ryan?) but no whistle and the ball was knocked on to Darcey Collins who  immediately flicked it onto Eoin Kavanagh coming past. He kicked inside the Kats attacking 50 with just over a minute left.

The ball bounced and the Kats skipper Ben Main gathered under pressure, went around a Shark and kicked from about 30, with the ball sailing through for a behind.

One minute left. Kats by a Point!

The big crowd was rocking. The Sharks went forward again from the kick-in but only got as far as half forward where a throw-in took place. The Kats won the ball and kicked forward and then the siren sounded to end one of the most dramatic days of football anyone could remember.

Hundreds of joyous Kats fans poured onto the ground and someone called the unprecedented three Kats flags won that day, “the Kat Trick!”

Post journalist Julie Bailey, in town visiting her son James Mazza (a sometime Kat) and his partner, Jess Allan (who played in the Kat’s Women’s Premiership), described the scene:  ‘Kids backflipped and cartwheeled. Beer sprayed over the crowd. People cried. It was pure football joy.’

 

It’s over! Kats by a point. Pure football joy (photo: Rob Mazza)  

 

Then, the three victorious Kats teams and all of their fans on the ground formed a massive circle and sang the club song that echoed around the park,  across the still, dark sky and out over the waves of the nearby ocean.

 

Part of the massive Kat Trick circle as the 3 teams and their fans sing the song together (photo: Karratha Kats FC Facebook)

 

In the rooms afterwards  an emotional Jackson Ramsay thanked the club for making him feel so welcome when he had arrived in Karratha. He said when young people came to new towns without friends, connections  or family it is the football and sporting clubs that become the family.

The Kat Trick celebrations went long into the Pilbara night.

There may never be another day of football like it.

Anywhere.

 

 

To read more by John Gordon click HERE.

To return to our Footy Almanac 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.

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