Grassroots - memories of yourself playing football

[camiam]

Any memories people have of yourself or even someone else in suburban football. funny times, winning a grand final, winning the game for your team, marks, goals etc..... what club did you play or still play for?

 

[Tas]

I almost drowned an opposition player who racially vilified me back in the days when it rained in winter and grounds we quagmires, and when players weren't so emo. Does that count?

Thankfully attempted murder wasn't a reportable offence.

 

[Honeyboy Wilson]

After having a well deserved rest to start the fourth quarter of my Under 13s Grand Final, I was called upon to take the game's outcome into my own hands by lining up again on my customary wing.

As I was running on to the ground, with no one near me for 50m, I tripped over my own feet and fell flat on my face in front of all the parents and family that had come to watch the historic occasion.

Sure, I represented my regional team every level of juniors, but all I am remembered for is being the kid who tackled himself in the Grand Final.

 

[knobby]

^^^^
very funny Bernie would have been great to see.

I did a similar thing playing cricket one day and walking out to bat ! Nothing more humilating then the fielding team laughing at you when taking strike !

I went to school with the Jarman boys fairly easy being a forward in that team !

Remember a second semi final, we played the unbeaten minor premiers and won 9.1 to 4.27, you think they were spewing ! They got beat in the prelim as well ! won the GF the following week quite comfortably !

 

[greatwhiteshark]

I remember playing under 10's as a 6 year old and we played real matches, we had ladders, finals, premiers. There was no modified rules.
At the end of the year there was one Best and Fairest and other assorted trophies.

Count myself very lucky to be raised in that era in the early 70's.

A lot different than they have it for 6-12 year olds now.

 

[pazza]

Wasn't that great skill wise, so had to resort to "other means" to get games.

Did kick a winning goal in one match though...a toe-poke through the mud.

 

[strauchanie59]

Scored first ever goal for my club..when I was 5 in the under 9's.
Had a draw with another team in under 9's..2.3.15 all...i kicked all points for my team in one quarter.
Represented my district in NSW championships and named captain for my team.

Definately loved my footy on the Saturday Morning.

 

[syl]

Won best on ground in under 11's and got $5 as a prize (!!!!), my dad decided it was a great idea to take the $5 and buy bread and milk on the way home... after crying and telling mum I was quickly reimbursed and immediately spent it on mixed lollies and made myself sick.

Also had our under 15's grand final delayed when Yarrambat and West preston took each other to court after a car horn called the match off early and then when they went back out the result switched. Ended up on the footy show and everything!

All for nothing as we were stomping everyone that year, they replayed and Yarrambat won then we beat them by about 150 points...

 

[theboxmike]

My favourite memory is probably is back in under 13s when i intercepted a hand pass about 40 meters out on the angle and proceed to run in Judd like and slot it from 30 soaring above the goal posts

 

[PatientMental]

My football career is just starting.

 

[Igloo]

I played in the backline nearly the entire time I played footy. The one time my coach put me at full forward, I kicked 3 goals in 5 minutes. I was pretty happy with myself, but then got moved back to the backline, and never played forward again .

My goal kicking tally for my whole footy playing life (8 years old to 19 years old, stopped after that) is 12 goals, 2 behinds. One of the points I kicked hit the post, and another one I didn't mean to kick. The guy I was passing to got a cramp in his hamstring and fell to the ground, and the ball rolled through.

Another favourite moment was when I won a 5 on 1 contest against the top team, right in front of my coaches box. I punched the ball into the face of one of the 5 guys, and then ran away with it. It was great.

 

[Hipster Doofus]

Won our U16 grand final a couple of years ago

In the preliminary we were 6 points down with 2 minutes remaining in the 3rd, the opposition were running all over us and someone needed to stand up. (bear in mind this team had handed us thrashings by 39 points the first time round, and by a whopping 11 goals only a few weeks before)
The ball was punted high out of a pack on the wing to the half-forward-flank and it was me fighting for it against 2 opponents, i manage to win the footy and shrug a tackle and decide attempt a sidestep around the other to get into some space. As i launch into the move the ball spills out of my hand cos im a ******* and (the footy gods must have smiled upon me) through the players legs!! Of course i run past the poor fella and gather it like it was all on purpose
So now im about 35 out with 2 guys hemming me in deep on the boundary, i bang it long towards to goal square in desperation and while i kick it i am gang speartackled by my opponents. As my head hits the muddy turf i can only watch as the ball miraculosly goes straight over the goal umpires hat!
Teamates flood to me in elation and pick me up and it seems to ignite the team, i get on the end of a wonky pass on the siren at 3/4 time and sink a nervous drop-punt home to give us a 2 goal turn-around in 2 minutes!!
We ended up winning by 5 goals and taking the form all the way to the Grand Final to outgun the much more fancied minor-premiers by 11 points!!

Ahhhh I love footy

 

[AG]

Losing three grand finals in a row for the Camberwell Sharks.

Two to the same club but I've forgotten the name. Starts with an 'S' from memory. Their home ground was near a lake and a pool complex. That's all I remember about them.

 

[maxmustard]

I remember in under 15s playing against Ashburton, everyone was raving about this kid called Luke Ball. After the match my old man said he thinks he could play AFL one day. 'Nah he's good but never going to play AFL'. A few years later he went pick two, my dad still gives me shit about it.

 

[AG]

Which ground did Ashburton play at?

 

[maxmustard]

Which ground did Ashburton play at?

We played them at pinewood. Don't know what their home ground was called but it's on warrigul road in Ashwood.

 

[Butts_JZZ30]

I was playing forward one day I was up and about...I was copping it from the defenders against a very bogan team from to put it lightly a shithole...constantly kicking at your ankles, calling you a homo all the standard crap.

I already had a couple for the quarter things were going well when I scooped the ball up baulked a couple guys and then kicked an instep checkside through for a goal from about 40m. Pure ass, such a fluke I have never achieved since...clearly I was high and mighty about it...

So...I ran up and with a full backswing slapped my opponent on the ass and whispered into his ear 'you ****ing love it' needless to say as I was walking back to my position I was belted in the back of the head and dragged to the ground in a headlock and a huge fight erupted.

Did I deserve it?
Yes

Would I do it again?
No

Was it funny?
YES!

 

[ManOfClay]

Never played footy as a teenager because of chronic leg and ankle troubles. Was never co-ordinated much anyway. Started playing again last year as a 20 year old for South Clare.

was a ressies game at Riverton and I somehow stuck a one handed grab over my head while running back with the flight of the ball. Was probably the most co-ordinated act of my life. Sort of stood there for a bit before realising I had actually taken the mark.

Now playing at Border Districts in the KNTFL. Season a couple of months away so will be looking to improve on my career.

 

[Crabman]

Had a promising AFL career tragically cut short because of a lack of talent and courage, although I was once compared to Wayne Carey and Leigh Matthews ... compared to Carey and Matthews, I was gutless, useless and not a footballer's ar$ehole. One day I kicked a point, but it was for the other team.

 

[Suma Magic]

Remember a season as a forward pocket in a terrible team just basically having a two hour chat with my opponent each week. I wasn't the most adventurous player as a kid, and probably too friendly.

Remember playing in a team that beat a team with Lynch and Kerr. It was funny because I later heard their coach was throwing chairs after the game in the change rooms.

Playing colts had a mate who was keeping time blow the siren 5 seconds too late (on purpose) to allow us to take a grab in our forward line. Turns out we kicked the goal, snuck into the last finals place on percentage (from that kick), then proceeded to beat 4, 3, 2 and 1 in consecutive weeks to win the flag.

After ten years out of the game currently doing physio to get my knees sorted and make my return. Looking forward to my skills being terrible like they always have been, but this time ill be slow and unfit to match.

 

[Brownlow Murphy]

under 14s playing for research, in the grand final against eltham. the hadnt lost a game all year and won every game by atleast 10 goals. 2 weeks earlier they had beaten us by over 100 points in the semi. so grand final day and we win by 20 points. best feeling ever.

 

[Murraj1966]

Never played junior footy, have played 2 games of AFL in my whole life, both during school sports. Sadly I picked baseball at a young age and my dad reckoned I missed the boat for playing AFL and that I should stick to baseball, won 2 flags and a few medals but I still wish I played AFL.

What sucks now is that when I play with my mates I can outmuscle them quite easily and always manage to get a fist to the ball and they say "you'd have been a great full back in the mould of Presti" (Collingwood fans). It's always been a big regret that I never joined a club, because while I reckon baseball's a great sport, AFL is my passion. (plus I'd have been a LOT fitter )

 

[Roddy]

I played for over 10 years, for Donald, North Ballarat (got there just after Plugger left to play for the Saints) and Lang Lang. I was going to be a footy player. Lang Lang was in Hawthorn's zone, and I was training with a Hawthorn junior squad.
One year, I broke 2 fingers and got a ruptured ear drum.
The year after I broke my leg all over the place.
Then it got really ugly.
The year after I copped a stray knee to the guts in the ruck which ruptured my spleen. They rushed me to hospital, and I was apparently 20 minutes from death.
That was kinda the end of my footy career. Oh well...

 

[.Shotties.]

Winning a Grand Final in the last year of juniors after a number of heart breakers. Even better though was another kid who was playing. Smallish, quiet, kinda dumpy. All through juniors the coaches would sit him out for quarters at a time, he'd be the first one dragged if things weren't going right (regardless of if he was involved or not) and generally not a prized player. Played the first half of the first quarter and then was taken off and as far as I could see was on the bench (bar a five minute burst) for the rest of the game until right near the end.

For whatever reason when the game was a tight match against a team we'd lost to twice that year the coach put the kid on, but in a forward pocket. Long story short the kid who'd had a juniors career that would make most people quit after half a season kicked a goal from sharp angles each side of the point posts. One to take the lead, one to seal it.

He didn't continue on to 18s, but I think that memory would do it for him.

 

[Cursed Cat]

I started out in under 13's, I'd never really kicked the footy with mates much and wasn't very competitive; just went to training one day on a whim and stuck at it.
I was shite for two seasons, slowly sharpened my skills and got fitter and learned to be more aggressive.

changed clubs in under 15's, went to Gembrook (home of Michael Firrito and former docker Andrew Shipp, but they were after my time) and we won the flag in my first year there ('88) - I started the year well but dropped right off and barely had a touch in the Granny.

The next (and last) 3 seasons were my best footy years, played on-ball a lot, came 6th in the B&F one year after missing a few games at the start of the season, and the coaches gave me BOG in my last game of juniors (it wasnt my only BOG, but a nice way to end the junior career).

Played two games in the 2nds at Gembrook, broke my collarbone in three places trying to lay a bump and never played again; too interested in girls and booze and other mischief at the time.
Shame cuz I was really fit at that stage and with a bit of conditioning I might have pushed for the seniors (I was convinced I should have been playing seniors but I was still a boy looking back).

Main memories of my footy career are of the appalling state of the Gembrook footy oval for a couple of years in the late 80's, it was once a pristine ground and hosted the league's Grand Final, but it went to shite - I got loose one day and went for a run; there was no physical way you could have a bounce, so I went to touch the ball to the ground after I'd run 10 or so metres and the bloody pill got stuck in the bog, I left it behind like a dill ..