Anatomy of a Premiership
For long enough I have heard the stories from the people that were around at the time of the last Montmorency Senior Premiership of what it takes to win a flag. Often with a rose coloured tinge to the stories I am told of how we grabbed the locals off the street and coerced them into playing for Montmorency and how people from other clubs were beating down the doors to come and play for the Valley Magpies. These same people will then look at the current squad and tell me we waste money trying to get imports and that we don't do enough to get local kids playing and don't pour enough into developing the junior teams because that is where the premierships in the past have come from. Now while there is always going to be a grain of truth to any story, it is probably time now to set the record straight.
Montmorency last won Senior Premierships in 1976 and 1979. The club was also runners up in 1977 and 1978, a golden period for this club. The stories go that these were the days when players played for the jumper and men were men and money never came into the equation. This was the time before the AFL, when the VFL and VFA were competing to be the premier Metropolitan League in Melbourne. Diamond Valley was seen as perhaps one of the best and toughest leagues a player could move to outside the VFL and VFA, and Montmorency wanted to win a flag and break a 21year drought.
The 1976 premiership squad read thus:
VFL
Adamson - 99 games Collingwood
William - U19 & Reserves Fitzroy
Goad - U19 & Reserves Fitzroy
VFA
Ford - 100+ games Brunswick
Denmead - 100+ games Brunswick
R McFarlane - Brunswick
Keys - Northcote
OTHER CLUBS
King - QLD
Rampling
Douglas - Greensborough, Runner up in Smith Medal
LOCAL
Burge - 100 games Mont
Paterson - 150 games Mont
Wilmot - went on to play VFA & Collingwood
Cole - 17 years old went on to play 150+ Mont and played at Collingwood
Majoor - 100+ games Mont
Lavery - 200 games
Whitechurch
Hodgson - 100 games Mont & Collingwood Reserves
Blair - 100 games and B & F
Frankenbury - 100 games
1979 Squad
VFL
O'Callaghan - 120 games & B&F
Molloy - 100 games & B&F
William - U19 & Reserves Fitzroy
Goad - U19 & Reserves Fitzroy
Dean - Collingwood U19
VFA
Skidmore - 100 games & Capt of Brunswick
G McFarlane - dual B&F winner
Ford - 100+ games Brunswick
Naughton - Coburg
Anderson - 100+ games Port Melbourne
R McFarlane - 100+ games Mont & Brunswick
OTHER CLUBS
Harkness - Hurstbridge
LOCAL
G Barden - B&F, 100+ games Mont
M Barden - 100+ games Mont
Frankenburg - 100+ games Mont
Hodgson - 100+ games Mont & Collingwood Reserves
Cole - 150+ games Mont and played with Collingwood
McKeon - 100+ games Mont & played with Melbourne
Paterson - 100+ games Mont
Majoor - 100+ games Mont
Until 1979 Montmorency had never won a reserve Premiership and the only thirds premiership was 1967 when they were U17's. Since then the reserves have gone on to win a total of five flags and the thirds four. On three of those occasions, 1981 & '82, 1994 & `95, 2001 & '02 the Thirds flag was followed by a Reserves' flag the following year. The development of the Montmorency Thirds and the junior club has continued to grow stronger, with the Thirds playing, until this year, in every finals campaign since 1991.
So when you wonder why there are not as many cups in the trophy cabinet as you would hope, take a look at what constituted a premiership side. The strength of the league dictates that a premiership club needs a mix of quality imports and a good group of quality local players that stay on to play at least 6 years to get to the 100 game milestone.
Last Modified on 17/08/2007 10:36