EXTREME SPORTS (fans)
by Chris Riordan
As recounted in the “Soppy Saturday” review for this site, Flemington’s incredible hailstorm provoked widespread discussion on other awful conditions we’ve endured at the races.
Sports goers often recall extreme conditions as a badge of honour.
I’ll never forget the numbing rain and wind that seemed appropriate on the Doggies’ last day at the Western Oval.
Or melting around Metropolitan at the World Match Play in 2001 – too hot for a beer!
What extreme sports(watching) have you experienced?
Gday Chris,
My girlfriend, Linda, wanted to get out of town for the weekend; Healesville, she suggested. Unfortunately, my scouring of the net found no available accommodation under a month’s wages. So, on Saturday morning, I nominated Ballarat. Coincidentally, the Roos were playing the Hawks at Eureka Oval. She could drop me off at the ground and pop off and do a few hours of shopping, coffee, sightseeing, whatever. Sure, she said. I think Linda rather relished the idea of an afternoon on her own.
Anyway, we left Melbourne at 12.30pm under blue skies and a hot sun. My sister and her family, including an infant baby girl, were following behind. However, things grew dark and threatening pretty smartly. By Bacchus Marsh, the radio was forecasting floods, lightening, hail.
At the Trentham turn-off, we were sucked into a blackhole. We were forced to pull over to the side of the road to allow Armageddon to pass. One bolt of lightening landed a bit too close to the passenger side window. ‘All this for a game of footy’, Linda said. We eventually made our way to Ballarat.
After being caught in smashing hail for over 30 minutes, my sister turned back and thankfully made it back to Melbourne safely.
I stood in the rain at Eureka and watched the Roos have a win while Linda hung out in the middle of town and paid $15 for a soggy foccacia.
We headed home early evening a bit soggy, yet relieved.
Things we do for footy.
I once went to the footy on King Island. There was magnificent sunshine, teeming rain and a wind that explained why the trees were all tilted at 45 degrees – and that was just in the second quarter.
I reckon it’s a sad thing that we don’t associate AFL games with anything but perfect conditions any longer. In my spectating experience, the only game in recent years that was particularly affected by the weather was the 1999 state of origin game between Victoria and South Australia at the MCG. It poured all match. Brent Harvey got best on ground. What an inessential experience it was.
Re- the telly, I’ll always remember the slosh at Arden Street when North played Hawthorn. Malcolm Blight was pushed in the back as he kicked for goal on the siren. His kick had gone through for a point. Scores were level.
The ump gave him a free kick which he was to take after the siren. The behind was subtracted. Blighty slewed the free kick towards Moonee Ponds Creek. Out on the full. The Hawks won by a point.
Great drama in the wet.
I was watching South Melbourne play Heidelberg at Bob Jane about 4 years ago. We were standing in the rain and it was raining so hard that my beer seemed to be full every time I went to drink it. That’s about as extreme as it gets for me.
Ian,
Now if you were in the grandstand watching South Melbourne …
My only wet weather experience was watching the Carlton v Essendon match in 2004 (Round 19 from memory) in the first level of the Southern Stand and it was pouring with rain and hail at some stages, particularly in the first half, of course the ordeal was worth it as the Blues won.
This is only a minor link to such a tradgedy, but on the morning to what was Black Saturday, I was playing cricket. Not least the smell of smoke but the forecast of low-40’s was enough to make anybody bat first, thankfully, we did but were also bowled out and had to field for an hour!!!
For the record, the following week, the match ended as a tie.
Yeah, that was an eerie morning Tom (and a pathetic batting display I must add!).
Recalling hot days, do you remember that Test day at Adelaide when you chased Bracken up and down the pickets for an autograph in a furnace-like 40+ degrees…I think Dravid batted forever?
I used to love bowling in 40-degree heat. I would always wear my sleeveless sweater. The batsmen thought I was nuts but I reckon it distracted them enough to put them off their batting.
Following on from Daff’s comment (2) I’ll never forget Footscray and Essendon at the Western Oval in 1984. It rained incessantly for the entire match. Neither side scored a goal in the first half. Essendon broke away kicking with the tide in the third quarter and led 3.9 to 0.8 at the last change. From nowhere the Dogs kicked 3 in 3 minutes half-way through the last quarter and hit the front. But the fairy tale finish was ruined by Peter Bradbury, who kicked the only goal for the match at the Geelong Rd end with a couple of minutes left. The Bombers won 4.10(34) to 3.14(32) and went on to win the flag. We stood at the Barkly St end for the entire match. That’s a definite “badge of honour” story for me.
A few years earlier our lunchtime footy match on the school oval was interrupted by a hailstorm. Every kid tried to seek shelter from the hail by hiding behind other kids. The result was a slow moving, seething mass of 15-year-old burgundy arms and grey legs edging its way across the oval towards the covered area.
Tuesday 27 February 2007, I was playing Indoor Cricket in Canberra when a storm hit, nothing unusual there, it had been a noisy summer. I didn’t think anything of it, that was until the wicketkeeper complained about the pools of water at his feet. We slogged through the final over and headed home. As we crested the hill close to Civic the road was crunching as we drove over. I stuck my hand out and scooped up hail stones that were covering the road. We headed into town and assessed the damage from the supercell and it was like some post apocalyptic nightmare. Fire alarms were ringing, the streets were covered in a metre of ice, there was thick mist and Garema Place was literally underwater. The damage was intense, there were reports of birds killed midflight by hail and university was shut down for a week due to the damage. Worst of all though the next morning I received text messages and phone calls aplenty, it seemed that footage of me wading through ice in my track pants had made onto Sunrise. Oh the shame!
Tim, in the interests of historical research, can we get a link to that footage?
1. Wind. Moorabbin, August 1981, St Kilda v Richmond. Straight down the ground, so strong that there were no goals at the South Rd end for the first three quarters. The Tigers were kicking that way in the last and turned at 3/4 time at about level pegging so it’s fair to say there wasn’t much optimism about their prospects. They somehow managed three goals in the last quarter including Paul Sarah’s post-siren matchwinner from 25 metres out – about the limit of anyone’s kicks into the wind that day.
2. Dust. Moonee Valley, February 1983. A 43 degree day, the week before Ash Wednesday, was suddenly transformed by a cool change that stirred up tons of mallee dust and blew it across Melbourne. A race in progress at the Valley disappeared into complete darkness. Can’t remember the winner.
3. Hail. There had to be a VFL Park story in answer to this question and for me it was June 1983, Richmond v Geelong. The hail/rain/sleet storm hit at about 3/4 time, turning the ground into a sheet of icy water. Scoring looked impossible which suited the Cats who were four goals ahead. Incredibly the Tigers rattled on four goals in 10 minutes to take the lead and then defended relentlessly for the next 20 minutes in which time neither side scored and we held on for a one point win. The carpark after the game looked much like Flemington on Saturday.
4. Lightning. Adelaide v Richmond, May 1999. Another thunderstorm and this time an alarmingly dangerous one which put half the lights out at Football Park. Had the match been called off at that time (late 3rd quarter), Adelaide would have been awarded the game as they were leading at the time. But both sides agreed to carry on, perhaps unaware of the rules or the physical danger they were in. The Tigers rallied and went on to win.
There seems to be a pattern forming here – wild weather, heroic Richmond victories?? Perhaps climate change and the predictions of more frequent “extreme weather events” will be our path to success!
Stationed alone in the relative comfort of the Williamstown scoreboard for last year’s home game against Werribee, I thought the mighty westerly wind might just knock the elevated tin shed over. It didn’t, but on two occasions the numbers that I hung up blew clear off their hooks and jagged into the turf below. Fortunately what there was a crowd was safely ensconced at the other end of the ground in the grandstand.
The Williamstown ground is wonderfully open to the elements. A few years back the ABC halted its coverage for fear of lightning striking the camera operator up in the crane at the scoreboard end.
On occasions the rain is horizontal.You don’t get that inside the Docklands cavern.
The Fitzroy v Carlton fog match played in August 1971. I have to declare I wasn’t there.
4 VFL matches were postponed in Round 2 of the 1960 season due to wet weather. Bolte refused these games to be played on Anzac Day (2 days later). Also wasn’t there.
Eddo knocking off Newk in the 1976 Aussie Open final. Furnace-like heat and a foul north wind gave way to a very blustery south-wester via an old-fashioned cool change that toppled the umpire’s chair.
The wind accentuated Eddo’s already crazy out-of-control hairdo and may also have contributed to him dropping the trophy at the presentation.
I was at Portarlington.
I can remember watching a Showdown in torrential rain a few years ago at AAMI Stadium. We all knew it was going to rain and the clouds decided to open up just as both teams were making their way onto the ground. I was in my regular sit three rows undercover and while we occasionally get a bit of water on our knees when it rains, depending on the direction of the win, I got absolutely drenched on this particular Saturday night. I managed to last the whole game in a poncho, including consuming an ice cream at half time, crazy I know, and went home sporting the drenched footy fan look.
The Crows’ NAB Cup final in 2008 offerres a totally different story. It was bloody hot. The game was scheduled to kick off early evening but with daylight savings in Adelaide still in effect the sun only set after the first quarter. Eight friends and I sweated out the uncomfortable spectating conditions early on and commiserated the Crows’ lost with a game of cricket outside the ground afterwards.
It was a social cricket match. The clouds were gathering when a mate looked up at the sky like a wise old wizard, assessed the wind direction, took account of the prevailing cloud shapes, calculated the El Nino effect on the local environment, then triumphantly proclaimed “It will blow over.”
What followed was a once in a hundred year storm that flooded the whole parkland.
It was a wet day. It had rained overnight and in the morning. It was obviously going to rain again later in the afternoon. To quote the old Aussie folk song “The sky is looking black as flaming thunder.” Royal Park Reds were playing in either our first or second season in the North Suburban Cricket League – C Grade (matting). The previous week we had dismissed our opponents quite cheaply and had made quite a few runs before stumps. We only had to bat successfully for about an hour to win on the first innings.
The independent umpire initially wouldn’t let the game start because of wet and slippery run ups. Alec, our fearless captain, who lived close by, went home to get a broom and some rags to dry the run ups. By then the umpire was saying that the light was too poor to play in, whatever we did with the run-ups. Alec drove back to the ground with his Volkswagen lights on high beam and then proceeded to argue passionately and at length that the light was good enough to play in. He didn’t even convince the rest of us, much less the umpires or the other team. Shortly afterward the rain resumed bucketing down and we all retired to Naughten’s Pub.
As Australia need to pray for rain to save the 1st Test against India, it got me thinking of doing a World XI cricket team of players who surnames or nicknames resemble types of water, wet weather or names of rivers. The names can only be used once and the players don’t need to have played Test cricket. First class cricket or Big Bash cricket is enough.
Here is the World XI Wet Weather Cricket team:
1. Geoff “Swampy” Marsh (Aust 50 Tests 1985-92)
2. Seren Waters (Kenya, 20 ODIs 2008-11)
3. Suresh Raina (18 Tests India 2010-15)
4. Raymond Flood (24 FC Hampshire 1956-60)
5. Jonathan Waterhouse (3 List A Staffordshire 1985-97)
6. Charles Showers (3 FC Marylebone 1877-81)
7. George Drissell (12 FC Gloucestershire 2017-)
8. Ben Raine (135 FC Durham)
9. Chris Jordan (8 Tests England 2014-15, Jordan River)
10. Nathan Coulter-Nile (32 ODIs Aust 2013-19, Nile River)
11. Sam Rainbird (56 FC Tas 2012-23)
This team can play an exhibition match against the Sydney Thunder.
The venue will be the Basin Reserve.
Geoff Leek will provide the commentary.
A special guest appearance will be made by Australian tennis player, Storm Sanders.
Entertainment will be provided by the song “Like a Bridge over Troubled Waters”, as well as songs from the rock band “Wet Wet Wet”.
The match will be STREAMED live on 7 plus.
Refreshments will include watermelons and bottled water.
Transport will be by water taxi.
Let’s hope for a good game of cricket where the better team will REIGN!
Crio !?! Gee whiz , that’s a name I’ve not seen for a while. Stainless: it’s been a few years since I’ve seen his moniker.
I’m old enough to remember when footy was an outdoor winter sport played on muddy ovals. R12, 1971, also R12, 1977 were very wet Saturdays. On these two Saturdays Geelong’s overall score across those two rounds was 5-15.
I note Peter Flynn talking of the Fitzroy v Carlton match back in R21, 1971. I also wasn’t there but remember seeing pictures of that encounter on the Monday. I can’t remember if the Sporting Globe had a photo of the fog that Saturday night.
However, I like Gigs, was at the Footscray V Essendon clash in 1984 when Footscray goalless for three terms hit the lead in the final term. Cometh the hour, cometh the man, as former Port Melbourne premiership player Peter Bradbury regained the lead for Essendon. I like Gigs spent the day at the Barkly St. end but I didn’t know him then , let alone had a chat to him.
I recall seeing Geelong play North Melbourne in a pre season clash @ VFL Park in 1990, and getting sunburnt to buggery.
The way football is nowadays played under a closed roof with a manufactured surface the days of wild weather having an impact is a memory.
To digress, I have some fading memories of cricket matches having stoppages due to bushfire smoke drifting across the oval , but can’t recall when/where.
Memories, though at my advanced stage of life they are fading, so happy recalling what I can.
Glen!
I forgot to mention Adam Hose, 44 FC Worcestershire, as well as playing for the Adelaide Strikers.
He can replace Charles Showers at number 6, and Showers can be the 12th man.
Hose can also be the captain of the team, in case he needs to put out any fires from the grandstand.
Geoff ‘Swampy’ Marsh can help with coaching this team.
In case another exhibition match is required, the Bath Cricket Club Ground has been put in standby.
Accommodation will be at the Silverwater Resort.
Furthermore, in case of wet weather, the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern(DLS) method will be used, unless the match is a complete washout.
Let’s also hope this cricket match has its fair share of watershed moments.
As the weather in Melbourne is set to hit 33 Degrees Celsius and with AFL Match Simulations being played today, it got me thinking of doing a football team in surname only that would be suited for the hot weather or the sunshine idea itself.
The spelling doesn’t matter and it also doesn’t matter if the hot weather suggestions are only part of the surname.
The surnames itself can only be used once but the hot weather ideas can be used more than once.
As it was more important to get hot weather ideas, the side hasn’t been selected for team balance. Several players have been selected out of their normal playing position.
This is the VFL/AFL Hot Weather Team:
B: Kevin HEATh (Hawthorn/Carlton/HEAT), Michael FIRrito (North Melbourne/FIRe), Mark SUMMERS (Rich/15 games 1988-89/SUMMERS)
HB: Marcus BOYALL (Coll/50 games 1935-45), Doug SEARl (Coll/Fitz/SEARing Heat), Charles SWEATman (Carl/39 games 1897-99/SWEAT)
C: Farren RAY (WB/St K/NM/RAY of Sunshine), Cam RAYner (BL/Ray of Sunshine), Eric FLeMING (Geel/195 games/1922-28/FLAMING)
HF: Terry BRIGHT (Geelong/BRIGHT Sunshine), Trent HOTton (Coll/Carl/HOT weather), Phil BAKEr (NM/Geel/BAKE)
F: Neil BALMe (Richmond/BALMy Weather), Jason HEATley (West Coast/St K/HEAT), Peter SOMERville (Ess/SUMMER)
R: Michael BYRNE (Melb/Haw/Sydney/BURN), Scott BURNS (Collingwood/BURNS) (c), David HUMe (South Melbourne/1 game/1925/HUMid)
This team will play an exhibition match against the VFL/AFL Wet Weather/Cold Team.
The match will be played on a hot day at VFL Park (“Arctic Park”).
Entertainment will include the songs “Hot Summer Nights” by Stevie Lange from the band “Night” and “Cold as Ice”, by Foreigner.
The after match meal will include hot and cold food.
Let’s hope for a good game of football where the players aren’t too hot and cold!
The selectors have decided to make changes to the VFL/AFL Hot Weather Surnames side, for team balance.
In: John SOMERville, Liam BAKEr, John SOMER (2 games St K/Coll 1911), John BURNS, Ray BYRNE
Out: Peter SOMERville, Phil BAKEr, Michael BYRNE, Scott BURNS, Mark SUMMERS
This is the amended VFL/AFL Players’ Surnames for Hot Weather:
B: Kevin HEATH (Haw/Carl/HEAT), Michael FIRrito (North Melb/FIRe), Liam BAKEr (Richmond/BAKE)
HB : Marcus BOYALL (Coll/Boil), Doug SEARL (Coll/Fitz/SEARing Heat), Charles SWAEATman (Carl/SWEAT)
C: Ray BYRNE (Carl/Coll/BURN), John BURNS (North Melbourne/BURNS) (c), Farren RAY (WB/St K/NM/Ray of Sunshine)
HF: John SOMERville (Ess/SUMMER), Trent HOTton (Coll/Carl/HOT weather), Eric FLeMING (Geelong/FLAMING)
F: John SOMER (St K/Coll/SUMMER), Jason HEATley (WC/St Kilda/HEAT), Terry BRIGHT (Geel/BRIGHT Sunshine)
R: Neil BALMe (Rich/BALMY weather), Cam RAYner (BL/Ray of Sunshine), David HUMe (Soth Melb/HUMid)
Coach: Scott BURNS (Coached 1 game Gold Coast 2022/BURNS)
President: Peter SUMMERS (St Kilda President 2013-18/SUMMERS)
As there is an impending cyclone heading towards Brisbane, not long before the Brisbane v Geelong game this Thursday night, together with the wild weather title of this article, got me thinking of doing a football team that’s related to a cyclone or wild weather by the surname only.
It doesn’t matter about the spelling or whether the wild weather idea is only a part of the surname.
Many players were chosen for their surname only, as opposed to their playing ability.
Many players were also played out of position in order to be selected in the team.
Jason WILD and Graeme WEATHERley were selected as a pair to form WILD WEATHER!
This is the VFL/AFL Wild Weather or Cyclone Surname Team:
B: Jason WILD (Coll/1995-99/WILD Weather), Graeme WEATHERley (Fitz/Wild WEATHER), David FLOOD (Ess)
HB: Kevin BLIZZARD (1 game Fitzroy 1952), Alan GALE (213 games Fitzroy 1948-1961), Michael GALE (Fitz)
C: Isiah WINDer (6 games WC 2021-2023), Geoff RAINES (Rich /Coll/Ess/Bris B/RAINS), Caleb WINDsor (Melb 2024-pres/WIND)
HF: Ray WINDsor (23 games Bris B 1990-93), Brendan GALE (c) (Richmond 1990-2001), Jason WINDerlich (Ess/WIND)
F: David HALE (North Melbourne/Haw/HAIL), Jason HEATley (West Coast/St Kilda/HEAT), Bill WINDley (129 games SM 1897-1905/WIND)
R: Scott WYND (Foots/West Bulldogs/WIND), Marcus WINDhager (St Kilda/WIND), Andrew RAINES (Rich/Bris/GC/RAINS)
Coach: Stuart DEW
This team will play a match against the VFL/AFL Hot Weather Team.
The match will be played at WINDY Hill.
Entertainment will be provided by songs from The HURRICANES and Earth, WIND and Fire.
Alan GALE will be mic’d up to provide special comments.
Let’s hope for an entertaining match which promises a “game change in temperature”!
The selectors have decided to sack Stuart DEW and replace him with Jock McHALE (HAIL) as the coach of the VFL/AFL WILD WEATHER or CYCLONE Team of Surnames.
The Big Freeze will also form part of the pre match entertainment.
It’s been decided that the surnames of the Wild Weather players can only be used once, but the weather idea itself can be used more than once.
Therefore, the changes to this team are:
In: Sam FROST, Steven ICkE (ICE), Lachie FOGarty (FOG), Stuart DEW
Out: Michael GALE, Ray WINDsor, Andrew RAINES, Alan GALE
This is the amended Wild Weather or Cyclone Team of Surnames:
B: Jason WILD (Collingwood), Graeme WEATHERley (Fitz), Sam FROST (GWS/Melb/Haw)
HB: Kevin BLIZZARD (Fitzroy), Steven ICkE (North M, Melb), David FLOOD (Ess)
C: Isiah WINDer (West Coast), Geoff RAINES (Ri/Co/Es/Br), Caleb WINDsor (Melb)
HF: Stuart DEW (Port Adel/Haw), Brendan GALE (Richmond), Jason WINDerlich (Ess)
F: Lachie FOGarty (Geel/Carl), Jason HEATley (WC/St Kilda), David HALE (NM/Haw)
R: Scott WYND (Foots/W Bull), Marcus WINDhager (St Kilda), Bill WINDley (South M)
Coach: Jock McHALE (Coll)
Following the latest idea about Songs Involving Ice, as well as the fact that it’s still Winter, it got me thinking about doing a football team where every player has a surname that has ice spelt in order, somewhere in their surname.
The surnames can only be used one. The exception is Simon Eishold, where the 1st 3 letters of his surname, Eis, can be pronounced as Ice.
The surnames of Winter, Hale (Hail) and Frost were also used to provide that Winter feeling.
Some players were played out of position, so they could be fitted in the team.
This is the VFL/AFL Ice Team:
B: George Winter (Foots 1935), Sam Frost (GWS/Melb/Haw), Mal Michael (Coll/BL/Ess)
HB: Steven ICkE (North M/Melb), Bill PICkEn (Cwood/Sydney), Ed VICkErs-Willis (NM 2015-20)
C: Gary BrICE(South Melbourne), Barry PrICE (Collingwood), Donald DICkiE (Port Adelaide)
HF: Dean RICE (St Kilda/Carlton), David Hale (NM/Hawthorn), Liam PICkEring (NM/Geelong)
F: Kysaiah PICkEtt (Melbourne), Ty VICkEry (Rich/Hawthorn), Derek KICkEtt (Ess/Sydney)
R: Tom HICkEy (GC/St K/WC/Syd), Simon EIShold (Melb/Rich), Sam MItChEll (c) (Haw/West C)
Captain Coach: Sam MItChEll (played Haw/WC/Coach Hawthorn)
This team will play a pretend exhibition match against the VFL/AFL Players Surnames for Hot Weather, named on 22 February, 2025, in these comments.
Venue: Manuka Oval (where it snowed and there was icy conditions)
Entertainment: “Cold as Ice”, by Foreigner
Refreshments: Iced Coffee or Iced Tea
Let’s hope for a good game of football where the players have “Ice in their veins”. If the Ice Team win, it will be the “Icing on the Cake!”
As Jake Weatherald was named in Australia’s Ashes Test Cricket Squad recently, it got me thinking of doing a cricket team, where each player has a surname, part of a surname, rhyme of a surname, or a nickname that resembles weather or a type of weather. The spelling doesn’t matter.
As there were many openers, some players were named in other positions in the batting order. As there was no recognised wicketkeeper, David Warner (Warmer) was named as the wicketkeeper, as he once filled for Brad Haddin as a keeper, when Haddin was injured during a match.
It doesn’t matter if the players haven’t all played Test cricket. First class or BBL cricket is enough.
This is the World 11 Weather Cricket Team:
Sunil “Sunny” (c) (Sunny)
Chris Gayle (Gale)
Alex Hales (Hail) (11 Tests England 2015-16)
Suresh Raina (Rain) (18 Tests India 2010-15)
Joe Burns (Burning Heat)
David Warner (wk) (Warmer)
Colin McCool (Cool) (14 Tests Australia 1946-50)
Shane Warne (Warm)
Ray Bright (Bright)
Sam Rainbird (Rain) (Tasmania 2012/13-2023)
John Snow (Snow)
12th man: Jake Weatherald (Weather)
This team will play a pretend exhibition match against the World 11 Wet Weather Cricket team named in these comments on 24 November, 2024. Suresh Raina and Sam Rainbird can play for both teams.
Venue: Tottenham HOTspur Stadium
Entertainment: The songs “Riders on the Storm”, by The Doors and “Have You Ever Seen the Rain”, by Creedence Clearwater Revival
Let’s hope for a good game of cricket, weather permitting!