WHAT FOOTY MEANT TO ME GROWING UP
Sorry for leaving nearly 5 months between posts: never said I'd be any good at keeping this going! I guess 2013 has been a fairly up & down year so far, but seeing its Friday, & things have been into perspective somewhat over the last month or so (something I might discuss down the track if I remember to write again soon) I'll write about a primarily positive topic, & one of my passions in life.
So, footy. Australian Rules Football. Our great homegrown game that only true Australians really grasp, though that is slowly changing around the world thanks to the good work of many people - though its something that you won't find on the front or back page of the Herald Sun anytime soon.
Its been my lifeblood, so to speak, pretty much all my life. Sport has always been an integral part of the Croft family for at least a generation or two, much to Mum's anguish - part of marrying into a Croft clan I guess!
My Grandfather was a supporter of Collingwood believe it or not, but luckily for me, when my father first moved to live in Geelong for work as a young man, he went along the line of "when in Rome...." & decided since he was now a local, he'd better take up supporting the local team - the mighty Geelong Football Club. So when I arrived into the world, Dad was keen to pass that support down the line. We lived in Mildura for my first few years, but moved back down to live in Geelong when i was 5. While I still do have a few faint memories of Mildura, my most vivid memories from early childhood days will always be down at Kardinia Park. Even back in the early 80's, Dad was a busy man & worked long hours. So on Saturdays during footy season, it was father & son quality time together, & whenever Geelong was playing at home, he'd take me to the big game. I was fortunate that I took interest in the games very early on, & really looked forward to those Saturday afternoons.
Of course, being the 80's, all games were played at 2pm on Saturday afternoon at suburban grounds with a reserves match on beforehand. We'd park in South Geelong, stroll along the railway lines up to Kardinia Park, with the whistle of the V-Line footy special train in the background, quite often rugged up in a dufflecoat & beanie as we endured a cold & often rainy or foggy Saturday down at G town. Back then it was only standing terraces only for the most part, unless you got to the ground early enough to grab a spot on one of the wooden rows of seats that surrounded the fence on the Moorabool Street side of the ground. Don't think we ever got there that early though - you'd literally have to be queueing at the gates at 11am when they sprang open to get one of those elusive spots! Nope, it was always top deck of the terraces on the half-forward flank, just to the right of the traditional old scoreboard. Sometimes we lucky to arrive early enough for me to get a spot against the railing. Especially in my early days I could lean or even sit on the rails if I got a little bored, or at the breaks in the game. Mum usually packed us some sandwiches & fruit drinks, or often Dad would come home from a couple of hours work Saturday morning with some fresh rolls from the bakery, & some fresh strassburg, & we'd knock up some lovely rolls to take down to the footy.
Back then, it was first-in best dressed as far as viewing points were concerned (which i why it was a bonus to get a spot at the railing). Sometimes supporters made concessions for a kid, but often it was a case of leaning over people or swaying to see the action depending on where the play was on the ground! If it was raining, out came the umbrellas, making it virtually impossible for a kid like me to watch the game. Plenty of arduous fans muttered "get the umbrellas down" the instant it looked like stopping!
Also there were little food options at the ground itself. I have fond memories of the crabby old lady at the hot donut stand proclaiming "It's only me serving, sorry", as you spent your entire half time break queueing for a warm bit of dough & faintly warm jam in the middle to ward off the cold! Then of course you had to squeeze past dozens of people on the terrace on the way back, & remember where Dad was situated amongst hundreds of other supporters sitting down & giving their legs a rest, or consulting the footy record to find out the codes of the other games' scores posted on the main scoreboard. Not to mention trying to find your way down to the packed toilets with very basic facilities! I remember on my 14th birthday Dad getting us & my grandparents who were down visiting reserved seats in the R.J Hickey stand behind the goals (this is the the stand that was just recently torn down to make way for the new stand being finished off now) - pure luxury! Pity the boys just came up short against the West Coast Eagles that day, spoiling my birthday! :(
We usually take a footy along too for a bit of kick-to-kick on the terrace.. On extra special occasions, if Dad judged we'd had a good win, we'd even head onto the hallowed turf of Kardinia Park itself for a kick, & even once or twice head down the players race to pat the boys on the back. There were many times on Dad's orders that we'd slip away well before the final siren, tails between our legs, as Geelong crashed to another defeat. One time that almost came back to bite us on the behind - a game v the Swans in 1988, we looked done & dusted & Dad said that's enough, time to go. Optimistic me tuned on the radio on my brand new Walkman, locked it on to 3GL with Teddy Whitten calling the action as we strode back to the car. Turns out Robert Scott had a shot to win after the sire, but hit the post!
While attending the footy is much more different experience nowadays, & is certainly more comfortable & enjoyable, I wouldn't trade those early days for a kings ransom in money. I got to see the likes of Daicos, Doull, Johnson, Salmon, Duntall, Flower... all the big names from the 80's & early 90's go through their paces at Kardinia Park well before things like switching games to bigger grounds became the norm. I saw many great players donning the blue & white hoops of Geelong come & go. Robert "Scratcha" Neal, Peter Johnson, Neville Bruns, Micky Turner, Darren Flanigan, the list goes on. Of course that gradually gave way to a more successful era as we entered the 90's - Brownless, Couch, Bairstow, the Hocking boys, Darcy, Stoneham. But still there was 1 player that stood above all - Gary Ablett snr. Even in the days when Geelong weren't a great team, it was worth it just see the great man wearing No. 5 in action. some of the stuff he could do & goals he could kick left me in disbelief. to this day, I rate him at the greatest player I've ever seen play our great game.
As the years rolled on, we even started going to some games in Melbourne. More great experiences as I was now old enough to understand the game well, but like the old saying goes, "theres no place like home". and that would always be Kardinia Park to me. Despite the heartbreaks of going so close to wining a Grand Final in the late 80's & early 90's, my father had taught me well - I was a die-hard cat fan for life, & a footy follower forever.
As our game started to change & the ground facilities with it as footy was gradually evolving into what we know it as today, I grew old enough to start attending games by myself, or with some mates from high school. Dad also started working more often & more hours on Saturday, but he would still come down when he could - he always knew where to find me at the ground! That flank in the outer on the Moorabool St side was always our spot, & remained so right up till the end of the 2003 season when they began construction of a new stand that was to become the new Hickey Stand. After a season of using the standing room behind the goals at the city end - now known as the Ablett Terrace - I saw the writing on the wall, & upgraded to a reserved seat for 2005. By this time, Dad rarely came to many games, content I guess in the knowledge that the Cats footy fan gene had been passed on, & happy to watch the game on TV! So it was just me, though occasionally I'd organise a seat nearby if a mate wanted to head down for a game.
We are about to enter a new era at Kardinia Park (OK, call it Shell/Baytec/Skilled/Simmonds Stadium if you wish) next week with the introduction of lights & the unveiling a new grandstand, truly bringing the Geelong Football Club& its home base in the modern era.We are very lucky to still have our own ground, when you consider most other Melbourne suburban clubs' home grounds have fallen victim to the evolution of AFL footy. Credit must go to the current board at Geelong, & those that have served over the past 10-12 years for their vision in bringing the club into the 21st century, & taking an old & rapidly declining stadium into what we know it as today! My niece also has taken on the Cats as her team, & has started coming to home games the last few years, which has led to Dad also coming back to some games too - he & my sister take turns in bringing her along & letting her cheer on her beloved cats in person. So there are 3 seats waiting for us in the Gary Ablett Terrace next Saturday evening for what will be a historic night, & we can't wait!!
GO CATS!!
