The 1982 SANFL Grand Final was an
Australian rules football
Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...
game contested between the
Norwood Football Club
Norwood Football Club, nicknamed the Redlegs, is an Australian rules football club competing in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) in the state of South Australia. Its home ground is Coopers Stadium (Norwood Oval), which is ...
and
Glenelg Football Club
Glenelg Football Club is an Australian rules football team, which plays in the South Australian National Football League. The club is known as the "Tigers" (or the "Bays"), and their home ground is ACH Group Stadium (formerly Glenelg Oval), lo ...
at
Football Park
Football Park, known commercially as AAMI Stadium, was an Australian rules football stadium located in West Lakes, South Australia, West Lakes, a western suburb of Adelaide, the state capital of South Australia, Australia. It was built in 197 ...
on 2 October 1982. It was the 84th grand final of the
South Australian National Football League
The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport.
Originally formed as the ...
, staged to determine the
premiers
Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier.
A premier will normally be a head of governm ...
for the
1982 SANFL season
The 1982 South Australian National Football League season was the 103rd season of the top-level Australian rules football competition in South Australia.
Ladder
Finals series Grand Final
References
SANFL
The South Austra ...
. The match, attended by 47,336 spectators, was won by Norwood by a margin of 62 points, marking the club's 25th SANFL premiership, having previously won the premiership in
1978
Events January
* January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213.
* January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...
. Norwood's
Danny Jenkins won the
Jack Oatey Medal
The Jack Oatey Medal is awarded to the best player during the SANFL Grand Final. It has been awarded since 1981. In 2018, Mitch Grigg of Norwood became the first player to win the Jack Oatey Medal on a losing team, after his team were defeated b ...
as the player judged best on ground.
Background
Norwood finished the home-and-away season second on the ladder with 15 wins, three premiership points off the minor premiers . Glenelg finished fourth with 13 wins and a draw.
During the finals series, Norwood beat in the Qualifying final by eight points, then advanced directly to the Grand final after beating Port Adelaide in the Second Semi-final in a controversial game where as reported in the Adelaide News of 20 September 1982, Norwood had 19 men on the ground for some time at the last quarter.
Andrew Aish was removed from the ground and the game when the mistake was realised. In some quarters it was thought that Port should appeal but
John Cahill said that he would hate to win a match that way.
Glenelg beat in the Elimination final by 50 points and Sturt in the First Semi-final before scraping through to the Grand final with a tough one-point win over Port Adelaide.
Teams
Match Summary
On a warm and clear day with the ground in good condition, Glenelg captain
Paul Weston
Paul Weston (born Paul Wetstein; March 12, 1912 – September 20, 1996) was an American pianist, arranger, composer, and conductor who worked in music and television from the 1930s to the 1970s, pioneering mood music and becoming known as "the F ...
won the toss and chose to kick with the breeze to the Southern End.
Second quarter
Michalanney again scored Norwood's first goal of the term. Although the scores were close, the signs for Glenelg were ominous when early in the second quarter, star forward
Kernahan was awarded a free kick 20 metres out from goal almost directly in front, and missed his set shot. Then at the 13-minute mark, veteran ruckman
Carey
Carey may refer to:
Names
* Carey (given name), a given name
* Carey (surname), a surname
** List of people with surname Carey
Places Canada
* Carey Group, British Columbia; in the Pacific
* Carey Island (Nunavut) in James Bay
United Kingdom
* ...
, still hampered by the thigh/groin injury suffered two weeks prior, was awarded a free kick at the top of the goal square, but being forced to kick with his non-preferred left foot, also missed his set shot. It would not be until the approach of time-on that the Bays would eventually score their first major of the term through McInerney, who goaled from a dubiously awarded free kick to register his second for the match. Norwood responded from the restart of play, with
McIntosh
McIntosh, Macintosh, or Mackintosh (Gaelic: ') may refer to:
Products and brands
* Mackintosh, a form of waterproof raincoat
* Mackintosh's or John Mackintosh and Co., later Rowntree Mackintosh, former UK confectionery company now part of Nestlà ...
taking the ball cleanly out of the centre bounce and handballing to the running
Fosdike, whose magnificent left foot kick from just outside the centre square carried through.
Adler's missed set shot on the half-time siren gave the Redlegs a 22-point lead.
Third quarter
Norwood were first on the scoreboard four minutes into the second half; after Glenelg had successfully repelled several forays forward by the Redlegs, centreman
Gallagher Gallagher may refer to:
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* Gallagher Township, Pennsylvania
* Gallagher, West Virginia, an unincorporated place
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* Gallagher (comedian) (1946–2022), American stand-up comedian
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Fictional characte ...
followed up an attacking play that started on the wing when
Michael Aish intercepted a handpass from Holst, and steered through his first goal for the game. Glenelg replied almost instantly when a long kick into attack by
Seebohm was cleverly knocked forward by Kernahan into the path of the oncoming
Lunniss, who slammed through his first goal from point-blank range to bring the margin back to 23 points. The ball then flashed back and forth for several minutes before a chain of Norwood handpasses found Neagle in the goalsquare for his third major. The Tigers again squandered several chances in front of goal before Kernahan finally converted his first set shot for the game 15 minutes into the quarter after being awarded a questionable mark. With Glenelg in need of fresh legs,
Farquhar
Farquhar is a surname of Scotland, Scottish origin, derived from the Scottish Gaelic ''fearchar'', from ''fear'' ("man") and ''car'' ("beloved"). Farquharson is a further derivation of the name, meaning "son of Farquhar". The name originated as a g ...
replaced Holst and was soon into the action, finding Kernahan with a nice pass. From nearly the same position he had kicked his first goal barely a minute earlier, his set shot was off target, registering his third behind. Norwood made the Bays pay for their inaccuracy, extending the margin back out to 27 points at the 19-minute mark when
Andrew Aish steered through his first goal after a messy passage of play. Glenelg were desperate to stay in the contest, and after a scramble from the centre bounce led to a rushed behind,
Duthy, who had been one of the Tigers' best in the quarter, gathered possession from Winter's kick-in and found Lunniss in the forward pocket. He registered his second goal for the game with an accurate set shot to reduce the margin back to 20 points. Moments later, Carey had another opportunity to further reduce Norwood's lead. This time, he attempted a set shot with his right foot, and his wobbly kick hit the post.
The 19-point margin would end up being as close as the Tigers got for the remainder of the match. As time-on began, Jenkins at full speed intercepted an attempted pass to
McGuinness by Cornes and set off on a long run down the wing, bouncing the ball five times, but his centering pass was cut off by Marshall whose misdirected handpass trickled over the boundary line. From the throw-in, the ball came to Andrew Aish whose high kick into attack was well marked by Roberts contesting with MacFarlane. From a tight angle in the pocket, he kicked his second goal. Glenelg had one final foray into attack when McGuinness' long shot at goal fell just short and was rushed through. The siren sounded shortly after with Norwood leading by 24 points.
Fourth quarter
Having benefited from the week's break, the Redlegs pressed home their advantage. Two minutes in, Michael Aish kicked his first goal for the game, trapping the ball brilliantly under pressure in the goalsquare before picking it up and snapping it through. Neagle followed up with his fourth, chasing a desperate exit handpass from Farquhar and using his body smartly to bump MacFarlane out of the way before collecting the ball and finishing with a classy snap off his left boot. Moments later, Thiel's long kick into attack was crumbed by Andrew Aish who fired off a quick handpass to Neagle. He steadied and kicked truly to bring up his fifth goal and with barely five minutes having elapsed in the final term, the margin had blown out to 43 points. The Tigers finally registered their first score for the term at the nine-minute mark when Lunniss smothered Winter's clearing kick from defence after he had taken a great contested mark. Going back after the ball Lunniss' screwed his punt kick towards the goalsquare, where
Symonds took a clever mark and kicked his first goal to give Glenelg a faint glimmer of hope.
That hope was soon snuffed out.
Keith Thomas ran on a grubby kick forward by Neagle, picking up the ball cleanly, taking a bounce and gathering pace with Cornes in vain pursuit before steadying and kicking a magnificent running goal. After successive behinds from Glenelg, McIntosh lobbed an easy pass to Jenkins, who had drifted unmarked into the forward pocket. McInerney's light push on Jenkins after the mark was enough for the umpire to award a 15-metre penalty, and from the set shot Jenkins made no mistake. At the 20-minute mark, Norwood made it three in a row after skipper
Turbill spun out of an attempted tackle and found Neagle on his own in the forward pocket. From the set shot, Neagle steered through his sixth goal to push the lead to 56 points, and the game as a contest was effectively over. Running on empty, Glenelg mustered enough fight to get back a goal through Carey, but Norwood replied almost instantly when Keith Thomas' kick into attack was read superbly by Michael Aish, who took a courageous diving mark and then steered through his second goal. As time-on neared, Andrew Aish joined his younger brother on two goals, combining with Roberts in a one-two handpass maneuver to push the margin beyond 60 points. Fittingly, it was the Norwood captain Turbill who put the icing on the cake - with his 23rd kick for the game, he brought up the Redlegs' ninth goal for the quarter. All Glenelg could do was add some late respectability to the score; Lunniss brought up his third goal, and then Carey was paid a free for kicking in danger, only to handpass to McDermott who missed from point-blank range, a passage of play which summarized Glenelg's dirty afternoon. The siren sounded shortly afterward to put the Tigers out of their misery and crown Norwood as deserving premiers of the season.
Aftermath
At the time, the win was Norwood's biggest and also their highest score. Half-back flanker
Danny Jenkins was awarded the
Jack Oatey Medal
The Jack Oatey Medal is awarded to the best player during the SANFL Grand Final. It has been awarded since 1981. In 2018, Mitch Grigg of Norwood became the first player to win the Jack Oatey Medal on a losing team, after his team were defeated b ...
for his outstanding display of rebounding football. Other players to shine for the Redlegs included youngsters
Garry McIntosh
Garry McIntosh (born 16 March 1964) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Norwood Football Club in the South Australian Football League (SANFL).
A dual Magarey Medallist, McIntosh is considered one of the greatest footba ...
and
Rick Neagle, acting captain
Greg Turbill, who played through the pain of a broken rib and torn finger ligament.
In his match report for the ''
Sunday Mail'', chief football writer
Ashley Porter praised Norwood's total team effort:
Norwood's teamwork was impeccable, its approach on the ball fierce and relentless. Every player produced discipline over four quarters. Its ability to outscore Glenelg against the wind in the first and third quarters was a reflection of the outstanding efforts by its defence.
Although victorious coach
Neil Balme
Neil Allen Balme (born 15 January 1952) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Richmond Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL), as well as for the Subiaco Football Club in the Western Australian National Footba ...
was credited as the second Victorian after
Mike Patterson to win an SANFL premiership, he promptly corrected
Bruce McAvaney
Bruce William McAvaney OAM (born 22 June 1953) is an Australian sports broadcaster with the Seven Network. McAvaney has presented high-profile events including the AFL Grand Final, Melbourne Cup, Australian Open, Test cricket and both Winter ...
on the live telecast post-match interview, reminding him that he was originally from Western Australia.
In the end, the toll of three hard-fought finals matches (and a six-day break before the Grand final) was telling on the Glenelg players.
Captain Weston, who had been ill with influenza, was well below his best, along with several other key players for the Bays. To rub salt into the wound, it had been his fifth losing Grand final with Glenelg.
Kevin Sheedy would use this fact to spur Weston when he played in the
1984 VFL Grand Final
The 1984 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Essendon Football Club and Hawthorn Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 29 September 1984. It was the 88th annual grand final o ...
and finally tasted premiership success at .
Scorecard
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:1982 SANFL Grand Final
SANFL Grand Finals
SANFL Grand Final, 1982