Best and worst grand finals of all time

[Tandy]

2015

 

[Rob R]

2022 was the worst because it was over after 6 minutes, the Swans were lifeless and pathetic, all the other GF drubbings were still alive at quarter time if only just

But yeah it was perfect football by the Cats, plenty of N Smith candidates

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2007 grand final was just as bad, you could tell Port had given up in the first few minutes. 2007 and 2022 winners were great sides but the losing sides barely tried.

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[Ed_Gein]

2012 is a bit of an underrated game

Unbiasedly good with great eb and flows. Hawks 4 of the first 5 goals, then the Swans kicked 8 in a row, Hawks burst back with 7 of the next 8, then we kicked the last 4 to pinch it.

 

[Corn Cobbers]

2007 grand final was just as bad, you could tell Port had given up in the first few minutes. 2007 and 2022 winners were great sides but the losing sides barely tried.

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Think you're right, Port were my second team before that day but I've hated them ever since, they still haven't recovered.

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[Freomaniac]

I have never said Podsiadly was the worst player to play AFL or that he didn’t deserve his premiership.

STPer18 said the 2011 grand final was ruined by the commentators focussing on Andrew Krakouers story instead of Podsiadly’s. He said Podsiadly was more deserving than Krakouer. He went on to say that Podsiadly would have had the last laugh on a ‘jailbird loser’ like Krakouer.

I just asked STPer18 why was Podsiadly more deserving? That’s it. I didn’t ‘sink the boots’ into anyone.

In my opinion... Both J pod and Krakouer would have fairytale endings if they got a premiership medal.

J pod was a mature ager at 28 years old. If he was this good, he should of been drafted at least 4 or 5 years before he was originally drafted.

Krakouer had his struggles. He spent time in Jail didnt he?

 

[uranium_death]

2013 was dead boring. My least favourite Hawks flag by a mile. Very few if any big moments.

Faves are 1989, 2002, 2008, 2009, 2010.

Ross Lyon is dead boring. It's his trademark.
When all is said and done, he'll be called a 'master tactician' who ultimately delivered nothing, and bored the masses with his monotonic cliches.

 

[peetoo]

Ross Lyon is dead boring. It's his trademark.
When all is said and done, he'll be called a 'master tactician' who ultimately delivered nothing, and bored the masses with his monotonic cliches.

The best thing about 2013 was cashed up sandgropers having a big party over here. Shame they had to lose. They would have ‘gon off’ if they’d won

 

[Freshwater]

I know it's Collingwood and they get all the media attention, but I thought the worst thing about the intense media focus on the Krakouer story meant Tom Lonergans amazing story of winning a medallion after nearly dying with the lung injury just fell into the shadows

Kidney damage.

 

[Lingsface]

Tom Mitchell 2 grand final efforts are a bit underrated- he must have the highest grand final tackling average of players who have played more than 1. 13 in both and made a huge impact.

Let’s be clear not the best ever but a couple of very solid ones.

 

[Cyclops]

Of the ones I was at 1989 was the best. 1984 almost as good.

One sided games can actually show the purest skills. The second quarter on 1988 was utter brilliance in a downpour of Biblical intensity. One touch footy with a bar of soap, one side lost tge ability to play because of the conditions and the other did not. I saw most of it but I was sitting behind Darren Pritchards sister and her umbrella kept getting in the way. Bloody Tasmanians!

I'm told 1970 was better. Have to hate Carlton, but Jezza and Hopkins were untouchable and our mighty were felled in the midst of battle. Very sad to read in the "old newspaper" thread that Brent Croswell admitted he was on PEDs for that game.

Worst? That depends on your POV even more than best. One sided can be beautiful as our Geelong 07 and Hawthorn 88 friends can attest: even Essendon 2000 was a showcase of skills you could teach kids with.

I found both GFs in 2020 ugly AF. Malthouse was a very defensive coach but the majority of blame is on Lyon for his hideous game plan. I enjoyed moments and the result but I wouldn't show that replay to advertise our game.

A lot of it was ping pong between halfbacks as double teamed forwards were repeatedly swamped.

I think only the last quarter of the draw was real footy, the rest was humanity struggling against its own self destructive impulses. Even 09 was a better looking game.

By the same token 92 was ugly. Great outcome for the Eagles, superb coaching but Malthouse sides were never the best footy, there was always a healthy dose of "win ugly" 94 was better, I think his rectum unclenched a little.

Still fresh but 2023 was pretty, aside from the Pies butchering their shots on goal in the 3rd. Great coaching, superb forward play and some decent defence too but even with recency bias and my black and white goggle on I can see its not the best.

 

[Roddy]

The best and the worst happened 2 years running, 1989 and 1990 respectively. I attended both, the contrast could not have been more stark.

 

[Cuzz09]

The best thing about 2013 was cashed up sandgropers having a big party over here. Shame they had to lose. They would have ‘gon off’ if they’d won

lol all 50 of em

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[PAFC66]

Think you're right, Port were my second team before that day but I've hated them ever since, they still haven't recovered.

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We haven't make a grand final since but we've certainly recovered since moving to AO. Club is in a much better financial position and gets 40k every game to home games

 

[uranium_death]

The best and the worst happened 2 years running, 1989 and 1990 respectively. I attended both, the contrast could not have been more stark.

1990 was hardly the worst, but it was certainly no 1989
Collingwood of 1990 was also no Hawthorn of 1988-1989, but they won the premiership in emphatic style and after their draw with West Coast, won all their finals easily.

Collingwood of 1990 was a solid team of solid players. Every single one played at least 100 games. Compare that with my Geelong teams of the 90s, where the top players were wonderful, but the talent fell away quickly.

There are far worse Grand Finals than 1990, and most Grand Finals don't stack up against 1989.

 

[Roddy]

1990 was hardly the worst, but it was certainly no 1989
Collingwood of 1990 was also no Hawthorn of 1988-1989, but they won the premiership in emphatic style and after their draw with West Coast, won all their finals easily.

Collingwood of 1990 was a solid team of solid players. Every single one played at least 100 games. Compare that with my Geelong teams of the 90s, where the top players were wonderful, but the talent fell away quickly.

There are far worse Grand Finals than 1990, and most Grand Finals don't stack up against 1989.

I went to that game, still unquestionably one of the worst, and lowest standard games, of any kind, I've ever seen. Just terrible.

 

[uranium_death]

I went to that game, still unquestionably one of the worst, and lowest standard games, of any kind, I've ever seen. Just terrible.

Fair enough. Everybody has their own opinion

We can probably agree that 1989 was a spectacle to behold however.

 

[Corn Cobbers]

I went to that game, still unquestionably one of the worst, and lowest standard games, of any kind, I've ever seen. Just terrible.

Probably the greatest day of my life [emoji38]

Agree though, awful game, Bombers checked after the quarter time brawl

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[PowerfulPies2023]

Top 10 no order in my time

2018
2023
2012
2010
2009
2008
2002
1998
1997
1992

Too hard 2015, 2020, 2021 could all be there 2021 was a better despite the belting. Rained goals.

 

[edgie]

Ross Lyon is dead boring. It's his trademark.
When all is said and done, he'll be called a 'master tactician' who ultimately delivered nothing, and bored the masses with his monotonic cliches.

2009 was a brutal game and 2010 was pretty good too how St Kilda got back in it from four goals down.

2013 was the dullest of the bunch, excluding the replay blowout. Hawks didn't even play that good, Fremantle blew a lot of their own chances. It felt like a regular season middle of winter game.

So Ross is 50-50 for entertainment grand finals.

 

[edgie]

2007 grand final was just as bad, you could tell Port had given up in the first few minutes. 2007 and 2022 winners were great sides but the losing sides barely tried.

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Port were well in the game early. Brett Ebert missed two easy shots on goal, then Pettigrew got ran down by Ottens, then it was one way after that.

 

[timokane]

Best 2023

 

[Ed_Gein]

Best 2012

Worst 2016 (Umpiring)

 

[kid_a]

Gonna exclude Eagles GF's

2023 was possibly th best game of footy ever.

2002 & 2012 also ****ing ruled in how dramatic and epic they were.

So thats my top three (neutral)

 

[edgie]

2004 and 2011 are both games that are overlooked too much, both were played at a very high standard for much of it, just the margin blew out at the end so they didn't look good on paper.

 

[Vankri]

I’m sure there a level of bias in my take, but there are two GFs that stand out since 2000 for the highest quality of football played and that’s 2011 and 2023. 2012 was great too but a distant third. 2005, 2006 and 2018 had the drama and the finish so you can rate that higher, but not the same level of football. Others in between oscillated between OK to crap, mostly forgettable and not worth a rewatch.