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Geelong vs South Melbourne

Scoreboard | Match report | Match statistics

Round: 11   Venue: Corio Oval   Date: Sat, 27-06-1914 3:00 pm   Crowd: 12,000  
Geelong 3.6.244.10.347.17.599.20.74 C:  Billy Orchard
South Melbourne 2.2.143.7.253.7.256.9.45 C:  Vic Belcher
  GEEL by 10GEEL by 9GEEL by 34GEEL by 29  

Match Report

GEELONG AT THEIR TOP

SOUTH WELL BEATEN.

Geelong, a team of varying form and few sequences of consistency, were at their best against South Melbourne, on the Corio ground, on Saturday, and treated 12,000 spectators to a fine display of football. Followers of the home team had misgivings, because the selection committee had omitted the goal-kicker, Martini; but in the glamour of victory, none of them attached importance to Geelong's poor record of 9 goals in 29 scoring shots. The big man's absence put the other forward on their mettle, and their work was fine. Orchard (the captain) and James replaced Allen and Blencowe. South's worst handicap was the absence of Prince (their wing-man), and Laidlaw, Rusich, and Mathews were spelled. Tandy, Mullaly, and Caldwell reappeared, and Jones was given his second run of the season.

1st Quarter

It was a perfect day, calling for the best football, and there was fine dash from the beginning. Saltau turned a Geelong lead, and Mullaly's free-kick found Kelly 50 yards out. Half a minute from the start he had placed-kicked a glorious goal. Morgan missed for them immediately, and Geelong were played twice in position by breezy, open play, in which Marsham was prominent. Heinz missed the snap, but came again, and John's game try was converted by Orchard, who ran in and scored easily. There was no denying Geelong in the next five minutes. They were playing a lovely open game, and some of the passing delighted the crowd Brownlees, Scown, James, and Orchard was one sequence, but it gave nothing. Gray, taking a bad hit out by charge, missed to get away; Marsham fired across the goal, and getting it on the throw-in, hit the past; and when Grigg and James came on again, Healy beat Deas and Saltau badly, and scored. Morgan at once returned the compliment by dodging three of the Geelong backs and punting South's second goal. Skill including taller men was shown in a skirmish by Healey, Orchard, and James, and Orchard following up, bagged the goal. Geelong led 3-6 to 2-2 at the first spell, and the honours of the term were theirs.

2nd Quarter

South showed their best in the second term—the most even of the match. The red and white made bad position in two advances, and their passing was uncertain. Geelong forged ahead 6 points more through Orchard's handball, Baker's skill and a place kick by Bill Eason; but Heinz and Alec Eason had no luck in tries from the pack. Grigg saved finely twice when Charge and Kelly looked dangerous, but South held command. Charge's long kick was only inches outside the sticks, and then a brilliant burst by Tandy gave Freeman his first chance, and a pretty goal—their third. The home side wound up the term by more brainy work, marred only by poor tries at goal. Much of their success had come from the dash of Marsham and Orchard, who for the first time this season were displaying their top form. Geelong had a handy lead of 9 points at the interval, and nobody doubted their ultimate win.

3rd Quarter

South were beaten pointlessly in the third quarter. When Geelong outpaced and outmanoeuvred them very decisively. Hair's great run in the defence went for nothing through a clinking piece of concerted work by John, Baker, Orchard, and James, and Healy won cheers for a desperate struggle, which gave Bill Eason another goal. Lane disallowed him what appeared a fair mark in the goal-base next minute. There was some of his old dash in a relief effort by Slater, who ended up amongst the forwards, and Orchard failing in a hurried try. Deas made the run of the day, but it came back more quickly in another phase of pretty exchanging by Orchard and James. The latter, taking Marsham's hit-out from the ruck, scored the side's sixth goal. Heinz was at the head of the two rushes in quick succession, and Johns, making a capital recovery, when cheeked by Saltau, beat him, and punted the home team's seventh goal. He had a hand also in the next three points, one for a shot by Bill Eason, which hit the post.

4th Quarter

Geelong who had put on 3-7 to nil in the third term, continued the same dominating ruck, Gray and Marsham, and both were factors in the eighth goal, drop-kicked by Healey from a chance given him by Bill Eason. It was an uncommon spectacle to see South to rattled that Geelong men were always loose. A Caldwell-Kelly-Sloss effort gave them their fourth goal, but Geelong pressed them again vigorously, though still wasting their shots. One miss by Gray, less than 10 yards in front, was inexcusable. When Johns, who was combining weight, dash, and capital judgement, got Geelong's ninth goal, they eased off, and in a very tame finish Morgan and Freeman drop-kicked goals for South. It was Geelong's finest game of the season, and the pity is they so seldom show their best on the Melbourne grounds. The final result was:—

GEELONG, 9 goals 20 behinds (74 points);
SOUTH MELBOURNE, 6 goals 9 behinds (45 points).

The winning side was remarkably even. Marsham, Gray, Heinz, Alec and Bill Eason, Orchard, Johns, Grigg, Healey, Armstrong, and McCarter were wonderfully consistent: and Fairbairn, Dalton, James, Baker, and Slater were hard workers. South regular stars were not shining brightly. Charge and Kelly were quieter than usual, though Charge showed in the ruck. Mullaly, Sloss, Saltau, Deas (till his leg went), Hair, O'Donoghue, Belcher, and Caldwell were the pick of the rest.

Lane was far from consistent in his awards.

FOOTBALL INCIDENTS

Geelong became perturbed on Friday when it was known that Martini had been left out of the team to play against South Melbourne, presumably for his indifferent display against Essendon on the previous Saturday. Four of the players — Marsham, Heinz, Slater and Orchard — with the famous centre-man of other days (Dave Hickenbotham) constitute the selection committee. Hickenbotham was away when the team was picked. Martini had kicked 25 goals for the season, or an average of three a match—a meritorious perform surely, especially for one who, unlike a forward rover, has always to fight for the ball. He was fifth on the goal-kicking list, too. So strong was the feeling against Martini being dropped that the selection committee was asked, on behalf of a large number of supporters, to reinstate him. But the committee would not recede from its position, and Martini watched the game against South Melbourne from the grandstand reserve on the Geelong ground, where he was surrounded by groups of sympathisers. Geelong won handsomely without Martini. What might have happened had he been in the team is another matter. Certain it is that the top-notchers among the other league teams would be glad to secure him.

Deas made the run of the day at Geelong on Saturday but when he kicked came down with his leg wrenched. Harvey Kelly, who was never conspicuous, went back into the goal. There were three Geelong men in a tussle against Tandy on the wing, on the Geelong ground in the third quarter, and two of them—Gray and Dalton—met with full force face on. Both were painfully cut, but played on unattended. After the finish the surgeon's needle was needed for the repair of both.

Footnotes

Title: Geelong at their top. South well beaten.
Author: Observer
Publisher: The Argus (Melbourne, Vic: 1848 - 1957)
Date: Monday, 29 June 1914, p.7
Web: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article7278523

Title: Football incidents
Author: Observer
Publisher: The Argus (Melbourne, Vic: 1848 - 1957)
Date: Monday, 29 June 1914, p.8
Web: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article7278502

Thanks to Stephen Wade for helping to prepare this report.

Match stats

Geelong Match Stats Career
# Player K M H D G B HO T FF FA Age Games G
7 Armstrong, Les 0 27y 11d 104 0
25 Baker, Jack 0 22y 200d 19 6
9 Brownlees, Rupe 0 26y 62d 63 1
12 Dalton, Bert 0 22y 309d 52 0
26 Eason, Alec 0 24y 231d 89 50
15 Eason, Bill 2 32y 194d 196 167
2 Fairbairn, Les 0 25y 63d 61 20
20 Gray, Jack 0 28y 314d 41 5
8 Grigg, Dick 0 29y 19d 184 62
18 Healy, Leo 2 23y 250d 55 21
1 Heinz, George 0 22y 262d 79 59
6 James, Les 'Jack' 1 23y 363d 48 12
21 Johns, Alwyn 2 20y 102d 17 4
3 Marsham, Harry 0 23y 343d 77 40
4 McCarter, Billy 0 25y 247d 29 2
11 Orchard, Billy 2 25y 322d 98 59
28 Scown, Percy 0 30y 349d 115 2
10 Slater, Joe 0 25y 210d 101 17
  Rushed   20  
  Totals         9 20         25y 233d 1428 527
South Melbourne Match Stats Career
# Player K M H D G B HO T FF FA Age Games G
1 Belcher, Vic 0 25y 307d 144 59
2 Caldwell, Jim 0 25y 320d 88 12
5 Charge, Les 0 22y 335d 53 41
8 Deas, Bob 0 27y 283d 79 70
9 Freeman, Jack 2 22y 224d 12 25
6 Hair, Ben 0 21y 271d 11 0
15 Hiskins, Stan 0 24y 25d 25 30
13 Jones, Charlie 0 25y 237d 2 1
14 Kelly, Harvey 1 31y 95d 82 123
24 Morgan, Harry 2 25y 95d 11 13
17 Mullaly, Dick 0 22y 8d 36 6
26 O'Donoghue, Alan 0 23y 24d 16 8
29 Payne, George 0 20y 211d 6 2
20 Rademacher, Arthur 0 24y 212d 30 0
22 Saltau, Harry 0 22y 283d 35 0
21 Sloss, Bruce 1 25y 157d 74 36
27 Tandy, Mark 0 21y 297d 36 3
30 Thomas, Claude 0 23y 73d 4 0
  Rushed   9  
  Totals         6 9         24y 89d 744 429

Footnotes

* Behinds calculated from the 1965 season on.
+ Score at the end of extra time.