AS WE ALL KNOW, our club is one that is steeped in history.
Our club began with Tom Wills and the writing of the rules, and we sit proudly as the founders of the game that we all know and love.
Within that long history, there is one game above all home and away games that rises above, and it’s looking us squarely in the face once more.
The great Queen’s Birthday clash.
There have been many memorable games over the years, from the record attendance at the ‘G for a home and away game way back in 1958, to the more contemporary - and my personal favourite - day that Jeff Farmer - The Wizard - kicked nine in the second half to get the Demons over the line in 2000.
After being banished to the bench early in the game, the coach had no choice to put the Wiz back on the ground after Ben Beams broke his wrist.
While it was a cruel twist of fate for Ben, it opened up the door for a rejuvenated Jeff Farmer, who entertained the fans (and his teammates) in possibly the best individual performance I have seen.
If Tom Wills was watching the game from above, this is what he must have envisaged for the game. High marking, fast ball movement, free flowing play, and plenty of excitement.
The fact that it was Jeff Farmer on that day who displayed all of those qualities must have again pleased Tom. It was, after all, the Aboriginal game of Marngrook on which he based the game.
Tom Wills lived in a town called Moyston - a regional Victorian town not too far from Ararat - which at the time back in the 1800s, was highly populated by Aboriginal communities.
I was lucky enough to go there recently with Cameron Schwab and Martin Flanagan. And, while we were there, the story of the history of the game unfolded.
While most white people at that time felt threatened by the unknown ways of the indigenous population, Tom was fascinated.
He watched these indigenous people as they played their Marngrook, and wondered how he could combine that with the game of Rugby, with which he was more familiar.
Eventually he penned the rules of the Melbourne Football Club, and AFL was born.
To me, it is this history that is the beauty of the game. It is a truly indigenous game to Australia, and one that we are lucky to be a part of and enjoy every weekend through the cold winter months.
And I have to feel proud that the history of the game itself is so central to the story of the Melbourne Football Club - a game that thrives on the performance of the likes of Jeff Farmer.
At moments like this it’s only a smidge ironic that on the Queen’s Birthday holiday, it’s the indigenous game that rules!
Our club began with Tom Wills and the writing of the rules, and we sit proudly as the founders of the game that we all know and love.
Within that long history, there is one game above all home and away games that rises above, and it’s looking us squarely in the face once more.
The great Queen’s Birthday clash.
There have been many memorable games over the years, from the record attendance at the ‘G for a home and away game way back in 1958, to the more contemporary - and my personal favourite - day that Jeff Farmer - The Wizard - kicked nine in the second half to get the Demons over the line in 2000.
After being banished to the bench early in the game, the coach had no choice to put the Wiz back on the ground after Ben Beams broke his wrist.
While it was a cruel twist of fate for Ben, it opened up the door for a rejuvenated Jeff Farmer, who entertained the fans (and his teammates) in possibly the best individual performance I have seen.
If Tom Wills was watching the game from above, this is what he must have envisaged for the game. High marking, fast ball movement, free flowing play, and plenty of excitement.
The fact that it was Jeff Farmer on that day who displayed all of those qualities must have again pleased Tom. It was, after all, the Aboriginal game of Marngrook on which he based the game.
Tom Wills lived in a town called Moyston - a regional Victorian town not too far from Ararat - which at the time back in the 1800s, was highly populated by Aboriginal communities.
I was lucky enough to go there recently with Cameron Schwab and Martin Flanagan. And, while we were there, the story of the history of the game unfolded.
While most white people at that time felt threatened by the unknown ways of the indigenous population, Tom was fascinated.
He watched these indigenous people as they played their Marngrook, and wondered how he could combine that with the game of Rugby, with which he was more familiar.
Eventually he penned the rules of the Melbourne Football Club, and AFL was born.
To me, it is this history that is the beauty of the game. It is a truly indigenous game to Australia, and one that we are lucky to be a part of and enjoy every weekend through the cold winter months.
And I have to feel proud that the history of the game itself is so central to the story of the Melbourne Football Club - a game that thrives on the performance of the likes of Jeff Farmer.
At moments like this it’s only a smidge ironic that on the Queen’s Birthday holiday, it’s the indigenous game that rules!
