Back to East Perth Part 1
A view of the main grandstand at Perth Oval in 1976.
|
Champion East Perth and state full forward Phil Tierney marks well against East Fremantle. Tierney bagged a century of goals on 3 occasions, topping the club list 5 times and the WANFL list once. He played 190 games for the club between 1962 and 1969, and 1971-72. He also played 16 games for West Torrens in 1970, kicking 65 goals. (Click to enlarge.) |
In 1961 the Royals put in one of the finest home and away campaigns in the
club's history, winning all but 2 of 21 games for the season. A 48 point win
over Cinderella club Swan Districts in the second semi final earned them odds on
favouritism for the grand final re-match a fortnight later, but the Royals were
on the wrong end of one of the biggest upsets in Western Australian football
history as the Swans won by 24 points to record their first ever WANFL premiership.
That 1961 grand final was 'Polly' Farmer's last ever game for East Perth, the star ruckman transferring to Geelong in the VFL where he went on to enhance his reputation still further. Farmer's importance to the Royals was emphasised in 1962 when the team missed the finals for the first time since 1955. Sheedy's impact was also beginning to wane, and after the club slumped to the wooden spoon in 1964 with just 3 wins out of 21 he was replaced as coach by Kevin Murray. Murray, an experienced campaigner from Fitzroy in the VFL, gave East Perth needed impetus both on and off the field. After narrowly missing the finals in 1965 the Royals re-emerged as a top league power a year later, losing narrowly to Perth in both the second semi and the grand final. Murray returned to Victoria in 1967 but the bitter taste of defeat was to linger at Perth Oval for some time, the Royals going down in the 'big one' in each of the following three seasons. Perth in '67 and '68 and West Perth in '69 were the Royals' conquerors, and rarely if ever can a side have experienced so much difficulty in taking that vital final step to success. Unusually, at least in the modern era, the 1969 grand final did not mark the end of the season for East Perth, as the club was involved in an historic trip to Delhi in India where it engaged in two exhibition matches against Subiaco, the first ever official Australian football matches to be played on the sub-continent. A total of approximately 8,000 spectators watched the two games. |
| # | ||
| Back to more familiar surroundings in 1970 the Royals again fell short of the
mark when they failed by 4 points against Perth in the preliminary final. A
grand final loss against perennial nemesis West Perth followed in 1971, but in
1972, at long last, the team returned to the winners enclosure with a 9.17 (71)
to 8.8 (64) grand final defeat of Claremont.
Coached by 'Mad Mal' Brown, one of the most colourful personalities ever to represent the club, East Perth had a half back line second to none, with half back flanker Ken McAullay securing the Simpson Medal for best afield in the grand final to go with the Tassie and Simpson Medals he had won earlier in the season while representing Western Australia at the Perth interstate carnival. [see footnote 14] Immediately following their premiership victory East Perth became the first Western Australian club to participate in the Australian club championships in Adelaide, and although the Royals lost their semi final to Carlton the series tends to be remembered more for the sight of Malcolm Brown going berserk and laying into every Blues player within reach than it is for the results on the scoreboard. |
East Perth's and WA's 1972 Tassie Medallist, Ken McAullay. (Click to enlarge.) |
Brown's antics on this occasion were by no means unprecedented. Over the course of his entire career he made more appearances before the WANFL tribunal than any other player in history (the precise number of these appearances is disputed, but they seem certain to have at least numbered in the twenties). Brown transferred to Richmond in 1974 where he maintained his reputation in every sense, missing his new club's grand final triumph over North Melbourne that year through suspension. All this said, it would be unfair to classify Brown as nothing more than a football thug. In 1969, for example, he won the Sandover Medal for fairest and best player in the WANFL, and he was runner up for the same award in 1972. He also won East Perth's individual award on three occasions. Without him in 1974 the team struggled, slipping out of the four and managing only 10 wins out of 21 matches for the year.
Post-match presentation time during East Perth's historic trip to the sub-continent in 1969.
'Mad Mal' returned to Western Australian football in 1975, but it was Claremont rather than East Perth which benefited from his services. Instead the Royals, now coached by Ray Giblett, were forced to concentrate on re-building, a process which was to bear earlier fruit than even the most optimistic of their supporters might reasonably have anticipated. In 1975 the Royals reached the first semi final before losing to South Fremantle, but then prior to the start of the 1976 season came the moment East Perth fans could have been excused for dreaming about for fifteen years, the return of 'the prodigal son', Graham 'Polly' Farmer, to Perth Oval.
|
Dual club champion (1963-4), Derek Chadwick. |
This time around, however, things would inevitably be different: there would
be no deft palming of the ball straight into the eager path of a sprinting team
mate, no forty metre handpasses splitting opposition backlines asunder, for
Farmer, now into his forties, was returning 'home' as non-playing coach, a role
he had performed with only limited success at Geelong in 1974 and 1975. Prior to
that he had been playing coach of West
Perth from 1968-71, steering that club to
grand final triumphs (over the Royals) in both 1969 and 1971.
Farmer's return to his original stamping ground had an immediate impact. In the opening match of the 1976 season the Royals dispensed a 14 goal hiding to reigning premiers West Perth and thereafter never looked back. With 16 wins from 21 games the side finished 2 wins clear of second placed South Fremantle against whom a comfortable 31 point second semi final win set up what ought on the face of things to have been the formality of a grand final meeting with the season's surprise packet, Perth. The reality of the situation, however, was that the Royals had emerged from the South Fremantle clash with what the club's annual report described as: |
......a team decimated in victory. The respite of two weeks produced an urgency of 'repair and maintenance' on bruised and broken limbs...... The doctors and trainers worked days, nights and weekends to try and repair what, in some cases, proved to be impossible in the short time available. [see footnote 15]
The upshot was that, despite trailing by only 11 points at quarter time after the Demons had enjoyed first use of what seemed a 5 or 6 goal breeze, the Royals never managed to get a run on - an eventuality rendered increasingly less likely after the rains came during the second term - and ended up losing by 23 points, 11.3 (69) to 13.14 (92).
| The grand final issue of the Football Budget for 1976 called East Perth under
Farmer "one of the best teams in the club's history", [see
footnote 16] but unfortunately history only truly ratifies such assertions
when they are backed up with premierships. Sadly, East Perth under Farmer were
not to get another chance at glory. [see
footnote 17] In 1977 the team just scraped into the four but were
comfortably accounted for by West
Perth in the first semi before, in somewhat
controversial circumstances, Farmer was displaced as coach
and the position handed to Barry
Cable.
In 1978 Cable was nearing the end of an illustrious playing career in which he had played for Perth (225 games) and North Melbourne (116 games) as well as winning the 1966 Tassie Medal, three Sandovers and no fewer than eight club fairest and best awards; Cable, who had been an ardent Royals supporter as a boy, now had a burning ambition to coach a premiership team, but two thirds of the way through the season it appeared he would have to wait at least a little while longer to realise that ambition as the Royals languished in sixth spot with only 6 wins from 14 games. Victory in each of the final 7 home and away matches of the season was essential if the club was to have any realistic hope of contesting the finals - and, sensationally, this is just what was achieved, with the side actually gaining the double chance on percentage after a 9 point triumph over West Perth in the last round. East Perth suffered their first defeat since round 14 in the second semi final when reigning premiers Perth confirmed their flag favouritism to the tune of 29 points. This was followed, however, by a 112 point annihilation of South Fremantle in the preliminary final a week later, and there was not surprisingly a mood of considerable optimism in the Royals camp prior to the grand final re-match with the Demons. |
The brilliant Barry Cable. |
The 1978 grand final was the fifth since 1966 to feature East Perth and Perth, and ominously all four previous clashes had gone the way of the Demons. This time, however, the Royals showed great resolve in atrociously wet conditions to run out winners by 2 points, 11.15 (81) to 12.7 (79). Ruck rover Ian Miller won the Simpson Medal for best afield, while East Perth were also well served by wingman Kelly, ruckman Duke, centre half back Bryant, and centreman Kickett. Barry Cable had thus achieved his ambition at the first time of asking, but it would be a long time before Royals' fans could again rejoice after a grand final.
|
Dual Sandover Medallist, Peter Spencer. |
Cable remained at Perth Oval for a further two seasons,
with the Royals contesting the finals both times but falling a long way short of
premiership contention.
In the sixteen seasons between 1980 and 1995 East Perth got no further than two third place finishes in 1981 and 1992. The side also contested the major round in 1982, 1984 and 1991, but failed to win a single finals match in any of those years. Not until 1996, when the team finished the home and away rounds at the head of the ladder, was there genuine cause for optimism at Perth Oval. This optimism was reinforced when the Royals scored a hard fought 2nd semi final win over Claremont but a fortnight later finals inexperience showed through allowing the Tigers to gain their revenge by just 2 points after a tight contest. Nevertheless, for the first time in nearly two decades it seemed that East Perth supporters had sound reason to feel confident about the future. Unfortunately, the 1997 (4th), '98 (4th) and '99 (8th) seasons did nothing to reinforce this optimism. However, following a pre-season alignment with West Coast, whereby newcomers to the Eagles camp were assigned to undertake Westar duty - when required - with East Perth, the Royals were many pundits' favourites for the final flag of the millennium. Ultimately, the pundits were to be proved right, but not for the reasons anticipated, as it was actually the Royals 'old guard' - players like David Swan, Rod Wheatley, and skipper Jeremy Barnard - who were primarily responsible for bringing the flag back to Perth Oval. [see footnote 18] |
After finishing 3 games clear of 2nd placed Subiaco after the home and away rounds East Perth confirmed their pre-eminence over the Lions with a comfortable 12.9 (81) to 9.7 (61) victory in the 2nd semi final. Subiaco then lost to East Fremantle in the preliminary final.
Two weeks later on grand final day the Royals - coached, ironically, by an ex East Fremantle stalwart in Tony Micale - fronted up against their old rivals in pursuit of a fourteenth [see footnote 19] senior flag. Early on the Sharks seemed to be in the ascendancy but East Perth defended well and, thanks more to a series of breakaways than any sustained attacking effort, led 4.1 to 1.4 at the 1st break. Eleven minutes into the 2nd term the Royals had stretched their lead to 41 points and the game seemed virtually over. However, East Fremantle, spurred on by ruckman Jason Morgan, fought back well to close the gap to just 11 points at half time.
The 3rd quarter saw tough, uncompromising, 'Victorian style' footy, with a series of delays owing to the blood rule. While general play was fairly even the Royals kicked better to add 3.2 to 1.6 for the term and extend their lead to 19 points. Thereafter it was a blue and black procession as East Perth assumed full authority all over the ground to win 18.11 (119) to 11.14 (80). West Coast rookie Dean Cox won the Simpson Medal for East Perth after a sterling effort in ruck, while Rod Wheatley, Callum Chambers, Devan Perry and Grant Holman also performed with distinction. The only upsetting aspect of the day from an East Perth standpoint was the broken jaw sustained by Kaine Marsh during the 3rd term which prevented him receiving his premiership medallion after the match.
All told, this was the eleventh time the Royals and Sharks had contested a grand final, with the score now 7-4 in East Perth's favour.
Much more importantly, however, the club had firmly re-established itself as one of the competition's heavyweights, a position it reinforced in 2001 with a convincing second successive premiership. The victims on grand final day on this occasion were East Fremantle's near neighbours South Fremantle, whom the Royals held to just 3 points after half time en route to a 17.18 (120) to 5.8 (victory). It was the third occasion East Perth and South Fremantle had met on grand final day, and the third time East Perth had emerged victorious.
In 2002 the Royals, Subiaco and West Perth staged a three way battle for supremacy for most of the season, with East Perth finally clinching the minor premiership on percentage from the Lions, with traditional rivals West Perth a win further back in 3rd place. The Royals then secured a 3rd consecutive flag in straight sets, overcoming Subiaco in the 2nd semi final and the Falcons with unexpected comfort in the grand final. Final scores on grand final day were East Perth 15.14 (104) to West Perth 5.14, with Ryan Turnbull claiming a Simpson Medal to add to the Sandover won in 2001. It was the second time the Royals had won three consecutive premierships; on the previous occasion, between 1919 and 1921, they went on to add two more. This time 'round, however, such sustained pre-eminence proved beyond them, and in 2003 the Royals' 2002 grand final victims, West Perth, had the satisfaction of ending East Perth's season at the preliminary final stage.
Things got even worse in 2004 as, after a season of irritating inconsistency, the Royals missed out on the finals for the first time since 1999, with their record of 11 wins from 20 matches only proving good enough for 5th place on the ladder. Then, in 2005, the side finished even further off the pace, winning just 6 of its 20 matches to finish 6th, albeit no fewer than 20 premiership points adrift of 5th placed West Perth. After that, there was a nominal improvement in 2006 as the Royals managed 7 wins to claim 5th place on the ladder before returning to the September fray in 2007 with an 11-9 record, good enough for 4th spot heading into the finals. However, despite coach Darren Bewick's pre-match assertion that his side would not be out of its depth in its 1st semi final clash with a much more experienced South Fremantle combination, that is more or less how things transpired. Admittedly, until half time the Royals were well in contention, trailing by a mere 3 points, but in the 2nd half the Bulldogs proved immeasurably superior, adding 10 goals to 3 to win convincingly by 49 points.
At the start of the 2008 season East Perth supporters could perhaps have felt justified in deriving a fair measure of comfort from their team's steady upward progress over the previous three campaigns, but the fact was that there existed a significant gulf in ability between the league's top three or four clubs and the pursuing pack. Nevertheless, the last thing those Royals fans would have expected was the dire season which eventuated, with the side managing just half a dozen wins from 20 starts to plummet to the wooden spoon for the first time since 1989.
These days, the fortunes of clubs like East Perth are determined at least as much by the policies and activities of the AFL as by any strategies implemented by their own management teams. Nevertheless, for a short time at least all Royals supporters will doubtless feel well justified in basking in the remembered glory of the 2000-1-2 premiership trifecta.
Where now?
or
14. This meant that up to this point in time East Perth players had won the Eric Tassie Medal at every Perth carnival since the award's inception in 1937. Return to Main Text
15. East Perth Football Club Annual Report 1976, page 3. Return to Main Text
16. 'WANFL Football Budget', 25/9/76. Return to Main Text
17. Unless you count the 1977 Ardath Cup, a competition for club sides from WA, SA and the VFA, in which the Royals got to the grand final before losing to Norwood by 8 points. Return to Main Text
18. East Perth actually played its home matches at Leederville during season 2000 owing to Perth Oval being consigned to the heretics, i.e. it was needed for the ineptly named 'Perth Glory's' soccer fixtures. Return to Main Text
19. Not including the 1944 war time under age premiership. Return to Main Text
