1980 was a busy year at SANFL representative level. My latest foray into the magazine racks above the old nursery robe plucked out the Budget from Adelaide Cup Day, 1980.
You wouldn’t know it from the cover but SA played against both Queensland in the main match and NSW in a curtain-raiser (against an Under 21 SA side).
The reasons for this curious pairing of fixtures is somewhat explained inside.
Note the clever logo used by the QAFL. The cover sets the record for the number of obscured faces in one photo, Neil Button is the big bloke going the spoil.
Some things never change and then there’s interest rates.
I don’t think that I was there when the gates opened at 9am. Former Sturt premiership player Bruce ‘Dizzy’ Raymond was the SANFL “go to” entertainer with his Polished Brass ensemble featuring both before the main match and half-time. We could only dream of Jackie Love or even Thomas Edmonds during those nascent years of the “match day experience”.
The stylised photo of Peter Jonas marking in front of someone, who is possibly South Adelaide’s Craig Cock, at the Ponderosa, set new standards in phooty psychedelia, ten years too late. I’m not sure what Bernard had been smoking that day. Perhaps the credit should go to Ken “verve and originality” Whelan for the layout. (Bernard – was that *the* Ken Whelan?)
Elizabeth and Woodville’s lifeblood. Gone forever.
According to this, the SANFL took it upon itself today to “promote football on a national scale”, hence the day’s two matchups. Fair enough, if you say so, etc, but my memory of this is that yet another spat with the VFL was in progress, and this was SA’s way of sticking it to them. Not sure that it worked in the long run.
Ray Kutcher built Football Park singlehandedly, or so he used to tell me when I worked at ETSA, where he finished his engineering career in the 1980s. Fos and Kerls, more South Australian than Woodies Lemonade, Balfours Frog Cakes, Coopers Ale and Chapmans Bung Fritz combined. These selectors were so deep, they were later co-opted into exhuming dodgy financial records in Sydney.
On this day, the biggest decision confronting them would have been whether to go with the lemon or orange cordial at half-time, given the opposition.
It wasn’t until the 21st century that clusters invaded both the cereal aisle and the footy field. There was one AFL coach in the 2000s who was given the nickname “Cornflakes”, as he was always being tipped out of boxes.
Here’s Fos again. It’s a pity that this page wasn’t in colour as his olive green body shirt would have looked spiffy against the burnt orange paisley tie that Fos had on (or was it the other way around?).
Fos was deadly earnest, as opposed to Deadly Earnest, who gave many kids the willies on a Friday night in my pre-teen years. It was only later in life that I was to discover that each state had its own local version. Deadly Earnest that is, not Fos.
Back to Fos, here he spells out the essentials for success. “Half-hearted approaches … will not be tolerated”. I wonder if Fos ever laughed? I hope so.
SA took the Teal Cup very seriously, having won in 1978/79. Alan Stewart was at the time the guru of junior footy in SA and in the 1990s would coach Centrals at senior level. Dean Schutz was a mate of Blighty’s and worked with him at Woodville and Geelong down the track.
I can’t tell you the result, but what I can say is that the U/17 team produced one of SA’s finest exports. Mark Crosby, as well as being a member of the AUFC Blacks sides in the early 80s, went on to become a high falutin’ academic at Melbourne Business School. A couple of other U/17s may have kicked on too, I’m not that sure.
The U/19 had a couple of handy types but their ruse of slipping in an aged full-forward from Victoria did not go unnoticed.
I was more excited by the Bulldogs v Peckers clash coming up the following week at the home of football, Goodman Road. Mmm, smell those donuts.
Hasn’t graphic design come a long way since 1980?
This potted history of footy in Saffron City leaves me with the question “what about the rest of NSW”? At least the other state leagues were named accordingly (putting Tasmania aside), so why the SYDNEY FOOTBALL LEAGUE? And did Atari sue over the use of its logo by the SFL?
Now this is where the politics become murky, or is it just the typesetting? Why are the NSW pen-pics given an SFL logo, when it appears that the side includes players selected from the Farrer League?
What was the selection process back then? Were the country leagues as strong as the city?
I’d be interested in knowing more about any of these names, their footy careers and beyond. Daryl Breust is Luke’s father uncle and from some initial on-line research, Grant Luhrs seems to have done alright after settling in Wagga.
This shot of the earlier NSW Escort Cup team was notable for including Sam Kekovich. Obviously this photo meant more to him than the Kangas 1975 premiership shot (or perhaps Lauren Hutton had left Australia by then).
Future Bulldog B&F Greg Smith is prominent.
At least AGC stuck with the traditional SA jumper in its ad, rather than the Centrals wannabe kit that was in favour for a few years.
This page disgusts me. Port and Norwood, Norwood and Port. Why can’t some other teams get a go?
I’ve still got a Centrals towel but not the matching apron.
Did today’s players also play on the Saturday, given that there was a full SANFL round? I can’t see that the clubs would have allowed 40+ of their best players to be unavailable, but what of the two day break?
Footy extended until mid-October in 1980, with a poorly attended State of Origin carnival held in Adelaide completing the season. I hope to report on that one day.
West End Draught, another reason to stay out that night. Most of these names went on to have good ordinary careers at the local level, some making it to the VFL. Abernethy and Fielke also featured in the Crows early sides a decade later. Slattery had already played 85 games despite his tender age.
Trigg would play for Centrals (despite attending Hackney High), North and Sturt, where he also coached. His recent move to Carlton from the Crows improved the average administrative capability of both clubs.
I travelled to Japan twice in Qantas business class. Big deal. Actually, it was quite enjoyable, but it wasn’t me that was paying.
Repco, they’re still going. Bankcard isn’t.
Around this time, Allan Jeans probably thought he was washed up after numerous seasons with the Saints. In 1981 after this loss, he embarked on an outstanding coaching spree at the Hawks. A lesson in persistence, laddie. (The Almanac paid tribute to him here )
Robert Oatey was his own man and may have even had an influence on his goliath father Jack, according to James Coventry in his “Time and Space”, but had little success at Norwood.
After its loss, the NSW side was given an old fashioned bake in the SFL Footy World the following week with quotes like:
“The best that can be said for most SFL team members of the NSW side is, they gave a half-hearted effort and just went along for the ride. Coach Allan Jeans was a disappointed man – let down by players who refused to put in.”
Did this match provide any long-term benefits to NSW footy? I’d be interested to hear from anyone involved in NSW on this.
The first paragraph explains why Wacka Scott was chosen as the subject of this piece, but it is also instructive to note that it was compiled by interviewing the then 80yo, not just through a dry run-through of stats.
Six Redleg B&Fs and the coach at four different clubs; this is a man whose feats were worth reflecting on.
I didn’t own a VCR until 1985. If I’d taken out Focus Video’s attractive offer, I could have paid off a state-of-the-art Betamax machine by then, at roughly twice the outlay.
Since Dave Darcy was still living in Adelaide at this point, I’d take the 7/10 on offer about this being his shower screen of choice. I’m sure his son Luke would have appreciated the frosted glass for extra privacy. Were the cartoon characters in the corner “Elite’s Gut Runners”?
All five of the players featured here played in the VFL at some point.
Matt Zurbo’s interview with Russell Ebert had a bit to say about his year at the Kangas in 1979, including a reminder that he only trained there once a week, flying over on a Thursday. Ebert would add a fourth Magarey in 1980. I hated Port but I loved Ebert.
Whatsa Duckworth was a revelation at my Bulldogs, a combination of steam train, enforcer and goal kicker in a brief but fondly remembered stay. He even made the white Centrals strip look fearsome.
Political cartoons weren’t often featured in the Budget, but future co-editor of Centrals fanzine BM, Peter Broelman’s career hadn’t taken off yet, so we had to make do with the seldom seen Bill Thomas instead.
There were some big outs for SA, none bigger than Centrals’ Richard Cochrane. Well, plenty bigger actually, but who’s writing this?
These four pages are the closest to SANFL p*rn ever seen in the pages of the Almanac. Red Hen spotters will delight in the references to Milan Faletic, Phil Gallagher, Flash Graham, Ron Hateley, Dexter Kennedy and Zip Zap Sewer. If I haven’t mentioned one of your favourites, let me know.
If SA beat Qld away by 20+ goals in 1979, it makes me wonder what the point of today’s return bout was.
Jim Michalanney is the one on the left, pursuing Magpie Kym Kinnear. “Piano” was a Redlegs four flag player with nice teeth. He must have had a good manager.
Poor Peter Cousins, left out of the 21 in what would have been his only State game.
Sixty nine scoring shots to six. The scores tell the story. SA haven’t played Qld since, although there was a SANFL v NEAFL match in 2013.
I wonder what the effect of this drubbing was on footy in Qld, especially in the period prior to the introduction of the Bears. If any of our readers from the Sunshine State can enlighten us, please do.
Again, if any of these names or faces have a history that you can expand upon, I’d like to hear about it.
Coke adds revenue.
Norm Dare was best known to the locals for his two years at Torrens, including the infamous game where he jumped into the crowd on the outer side and hid under a spectator’s raincoat to avoid being included in the count that was caused by a too eager Freddie Bills in his last game.
Here is the incident – warning, if you don’t want to see Torrens coach Noel Teasdale smoking on the sidelines or John Cassin going the full Robbie Muir, look away now. Otherwise this is the funniest thing you’ll see this week.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmfpDxajVxU&w=560&h=315]
Dare managed to overcome the ignominy of this result to forge a storied coaching career at QAFL and AFL level. He must have been a very patient character.
Frank Gumbleton joins the legion of balding hardnuts who moved on to lesser competitions to continue their footballing days. With two flags at the Kangas, good on him I say.
Punctuation optional
It’s fair to say that both Qld and NSW were coming from a fair way back, but it was good to see the topical footy history that was published here.
(Nb SA kicking up – names underneath. The four names per team at the bottom of the lineups – does this mean that there was only one reserve from the nineteen named in each team?)
When did the cost of a skinny late supplant the humble crumpet as the advertiser’s disposable income yardstick?
Bingo, Miss Football Quests, Players Disco, Devonshire Tea/Plant Parties – is it any wonder that the SANFL clubs couldn’t keep their best players (or Doug Cox). It was probably too late for anyone that wanted to attend the Peckers Adelaide Cup Chicken and Champagne Breakfast though.
The Cup was run at Victoria Park in 1980, due to renovations at Morphettville arising from the members’ stand fire of 1979.
Race 2 – the Larry Pickering Graduation, Stormy Rex going around in the 4th, Gold and Black in the Cup field (but did it start?), Domax, Military Rule. I remember so many of these names, they must have raced until they were twelve year olds. My personal favourite Phar Call was balloted out of the Cup.
Yashmak, Pearl Lover and Lovelace Watkins (any resemblance to the entertainer was purely coincidental) were the first three past the post.
Filter tipped. Smooth mild taste. Length. As endorsed by Blighty, Bones McGhie and Teaser.
All roads lead to the Bridgewater Inn and the Old Mill at Hahndorf.
$20 per person – all inclusive. Where’s that Time Machine?
1980 – the washup
A couple of months later, another Senior/U21 double header was played against WA/ACT at this venue, followed not long after that by a fiery clash against the VFA. In one season, SA had played against Qld, WA and the VFA with U/21 games against NSW and the ACT.
I’m not sure what SA had against Tassie though.
About Mark 'Swish' Schwerdt
Saw my first SANFL game in 1967 - Dogs v Peckers. Have only ever seen the Dogs win 1 final in the flesh (1972 1st Semi) Mediocre forward pocket for the AUFC Blacks (1982-89) Life member - Ormond Netball Club -That's me on the right
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I can tell you a little bit about a couple of the NSW players, Swish.
Grant Luhrs went on to a fairly successful music career. His best known work was as part of a duo known as Luhrs and Crawford. He now runs a recording studio in Wagga called Flying Fox Studios (I’ve even recorded there myself) and is a top bloke.
Gerald Pieper went on to play with a number of clubs in the area as well becoming the RFL League President and being inducted into the Wagga Wagga Sporting Hall of Fame. More recently he was found guilty of defrauding his employer, Riverina Water County Council, of more than $350,000. He is now serving a three-year prison term.
Swings and roundabouts.
Swish – good to see All Australian and Yorketown Senior Colts premiership player Tony Giles in the SA lineup again.
Josh – sad story with Gerald Pieper. I googled the story of his trial and he offered no explanation for the theft. Gambling? It catches a lot of sportsman looking to keep the adrenalin flow going after their careers.
Nice work Swish. Fos Williams’s hair should have its own bronze plaque on North Tce. Obviously the drubbing at the hands of SA was beneficial for Qld as the son of one of the players returned to take the 2006 Magarey (Brett Backwell). In a rare club of Liston/Magarey medallists. Despite the thrashing, gotta love a team that has two Bruces, two Trevors, four Garrys and a Barry. Great line on Triggy!
Love these pieces Swish. Some great names here and I agree about the SANFL p*rn. Many idols there.
It’s fascinating to think that there was a time when a local business could make and sell shower screens, and make a dollar.
Phil Gallagher and Gladstone Small both missed out on big dollars modelling neckties.
Looking forward to the next installment.
Hey Mal great article mate, brought back some very found memories of that great u 17 teal cup team
Some super stars come out of that side (not me) ?
But as a side point I did play in the QAFL for a year and there is a snow balls chance in hell they would ever get close to the boys from SA in fact I think a state resevese side would be stronger, just my thoughts of course
Keeping he great work
Glad to see one of my Budgets getting an airing. I can’t remember why I chose that cover but it might have had something to do with keeping our opponents anonymous as well. Neil Button was a very good ruckman and in Norwood clashes against Glenelg I would back him to get the better of ‘Super’ Carey. For a nothing game fans still got plenty of copy for their 50 cents, not like the lazy offering of current Budgets.
Nailed it with ‘SANFL p*rn’, even more so with ‘Red Hen spotters’. Just sensational stuff.
Michael Dickfos for Queensland would have to be a relation of Danny’s, but what?
Would also assume the Weller in the Qld side would be a father or other relation to the pair that are playing in the AFL now?
To follow up Swish. No, the Ken Whelan who did the graphic design was not the Sturt footballer. He was a softly-spoken Port Adelaide diehard. Sadly, both Ken Whelans died young. And, no, I wasn’t tripping in any way. The sum of my drug experiences was smoking half a joint in Delhi in 1973.
Swish, I can tell you the result in the Under 17’s v Under 19’s game. The under 17’s won comfortably! The match was a trial for the Teal Cup squad. The under 19 team was selected on the basis of two players from each SANFL club. The only reason I got a game was due to the SANFL clubs selecting the players to play. Sturt under 19 coach Geoff Pearce always liked me. As you can see the talent in that under 17 side was enormous. I stood Chris Smelt that day. Years later Chris worked for Sturt as a Development Officer. I talked to him about that game and the awesome Teal Cup squad he was a part of. Chris said he was personally overwhelmed by the quality of players in that team.
Yeah, Michael is Danny’s brother, Mark. Mav Weller is from Tasmania Mick so not sure what the connection is. Neville is Luke Weller’s dad – played some games for Brisbane and Richmond in the 00s.
Thanks one and all for your comments
Josh – A lot can happen in 35 years I guess. That part of the world is probably Australia’s sporting epicentre
PB – Tony Giles owes it all to you.
Dave – Fos’ hair statue would probably cost as much at the one of Roo that Citrus Bob is pushing for. Well done on the Backwell connection, but Saade Ghazi was robbed of a Magarey Medal in 1990. I wonder if the QAFL team were wearing thongs when they touched down at the old domestic terminal?
Mickey – They should turn the Holden factory on Philip Highway into a shower screen assembly plant and introduce a government policy that mandates a change of shower screens with each Federal election. Works at so many levels.
Coke – FANTAStic
Bernard – The golden years of the Footy Budget. So much rich content for less than the price of a bag of Golden Crumpets. Good points re Button. You’ve got me covered on the drug front, I tried to snort coke once but the ring pull got caught in my nose.
Mark D – Apparently the Red Hens went for a run on the Outer Harbour line a few weeks back. I can still remember the smell of the matching coloured vinyl bench seats.
Mick – Good get, I’ll see what I can find out
Skittles – Some great insight. Did you remind Cros of that day?
And thanks to my twitter buddies @diogenesbrown @MikeHugo_ and @McAlmanac it looks like the mystery South player on page 3 was Paul Harradine
Garry Maddison who played for Qld came down and played a few league games for Norwood his brother
Geoff had a kick and catch at the parade also ( love seeng who we can chase up re your articles,Swish)
I think the Maddisons were both Croweaters. They played baseball for East Torrens.
On closer inspection I concur that this is the finest piece of Crow porn assembled on this site (to date). Funny how memory plays tricks with you. Some are clear and others lost in the fog of time. Bruce Lindsay was a ripper who carried most of the West Torrens teams of the 70’s. Matt Rendell was a great ruckman at both Torrens and the Lions. From memory Rendell had a knee reconstruction early in his career (as did Lindsay) which limited his mobility and he cam back bulkier. But Peter Cousins – I don’t recall – as Alan Bond liked to say (interminably). Stuart Palmer? Peter Meuret? Not fit to tie Tony Giles’ boot laces.
Milan Faletic (by then an Eagles traitor) got a state game! I remember when the Eagles teams of the 70’s were populated by Floreani, Faletic and Phillipou. My theory of why we were crap was that “New Australians” (great euphemism) did not have the genetic disposition for the Australian game. It also explained your Bulldogs being crap as they were all British migrants. Early racial profiling I guess – now thoroughly disproved by history.
West Torrens were also advertising a Champagne Breakfast for 8am on Monday May 19 1980. 1981 would have made more sense. We were always a step behind – on and off the field.
Thanks Swish.
Gary Maddison played some league games for Norwood as a half -forward in 1977-78. Tall, but lightly built, he was highly skilled player with a superb kick. Winning spots across half forward was tough at that time with Roger Woodcock still playing at his best, Chris Feineman, and sometimes followers like Neil Craig and David Armour slotting in there as well. Gary moved to Queensland to work with another brother in Real Estate and naturally got involved in the QFL !!! Older brother Geoff showed promise as a full forward in the Reserves in 1974 / 75 seasons. Geoff was a taller and more powerful build than Gary, and not quite as quick, but he had great hands and was an accurate kick for goal. I don’t recall Geoff being selected in the league side although I do remember watching him play in a pre-season trial at Kardinia Park against Geelong in 1975. Geoff was made an offer he couldn’t refuse to play Baseball in the USA !!!!
Both Gary and Geoff Maddison were local boys playing their junior football with Payneham and both were students at Payneham school and local high schools before moving across to Norwood.
Thanks Michael R for the info on the Maddisons. I played baseball against their younger brother. Think they may have all played for SA as juniors.
Loved it Swish. I had a year in Germany in 1980, after 4th year, and therefore sadly entirely missed this extravaganza. Why didn’t someone tell me? Better late than never I guess. 3 Blacks in that under-age stand-off: Cros (85 Canberra IV All-Australian), Skittle (86 premiership player) & Mase. A few years picking up splinters on the Norwood under-age bench (u/15 was as far as I got) at least exposed me up close to some serious footy talent, already well and truly evident: Kernahan, McDermott, Bradley et al; and in 1981 (when Norwood high somehow made it to the schools knockout final), McGuinness (in the semi for Brighton) & Motley (Blackwood in the final). Can you please send me a copy of the apron advertisement (& the Coke one while you’re at it)? I’d like to inspect them a little more closely.
I played in U 19 team that day on a young whipper snapper by the name of Bradley. Felt like I was playing for the Washington Generals v Globetrotters.
Daddsy, according to Google, that Edwardstown apron factory is no longer churning them out.
Mase, I still reckon that Bradley’s overall efforts are under-recognised. No disgrace to get towelled up by him.
Great stuff Swish.
I was talking to Ken Murphy, the former QAFL General Manager, about this match a few weeks ago.
Murph had just been appointed as the first GM for the code earlier that year. Up until then the QAFL was run by an enthusiastic board and full time secretary (20 years), Joe Grant.
Notable names in the Queensland team:
Gary Shaw – record transfer fee to go to Collingwood (via a WA club … Claremont?)
Owen Backwell – his son Brett won a Liston Trophy and a Magery Medal.
The embarrassing loss was predictable, but it did spark a review of things.
Andrew Ireland was appointed State Director Coaching after this debacle. Within a couple of years several development officers were in place. A more “professional” approach to interstate footy was adopted.
By 1984/5/6 Queensland had beaten Tasmania a couple of times. Jason Dunstall and Scott McIvor were the first products of improved development programs.
Footy was on the rise in Queensland … until the Skase/Cronin Cararra Bears arrived in 1987 … then things got complicated …
Queensland would put up a better show in 2016
Bring back State of Origin
You would beat us … but maybe only by 10 goals not 35 …
Lots more footy played outside of Brisbane from 1970s onwards
Queensland State of Origin team 2016
Riewoldt (Gold Coast)
Armitage (Mackay)
Beams (Gold Coast)
Tippett (Gold Coast)
Zorko (Gold Coast)
Dixon (Cairns)
Z. Smith (Rockhampton)
Merrett (Gold Coast)
Spurr
Harbrow (Cairns)
Hampson
Hale (Gold Coast)
Thompson (Gold Coast)
Hickey
Bell
Whitecross
Cameron
Sexton
Bail
Dempsey (Cairns)
Oxley
Andrews
Thanks Muz, just what I was hoping to elicit
Swish,
Just getting around to answering your questions about the NSW team.
You’re right it was mainly comprised of players from the Riverina – South-West and Farrer Leagues.
Only a handful of Sydney players, but Luhrs and Pleming were from the Riverina as well.
Footy has always been stronger in the country in NSW, than in Sydney. Still is.
Beaker Breust is not Luke Breust’s father, Sticker Breust is.
I went to this game – Qld’s 3rd and final goal came just before the final siren cutting the margin to below 200 points which annoyed me greatly on the day as I had never witnessed a game featuring a 200 point margin ! SA kicked 30.39 – missed a lot of easy shots – Glenelg’s 1975 effort of 49.23 should have been easily smashed by SA in this game.