Players who played there best game in a Grand Final

[Timmy from Thomastown]

Paul Dear owns this thread. Norm Smith mediallist. His brother had a pretty good career but Paul was a good ordinary plodder. His GF was one out of the box

Other notables
Shane Ellen
Josh Mahoney ( I dont count Byron Pickett although it may have been his best game, he had plenty of other great games in his career) Mahoney was a miracle story after being rookie drafted from the VFL. It was his fourth? club after failing at the other three
Mitch Morton

Xavier Ellis 2008 I dont really count. He was a top three draft pick but injury cruelled him. Clinton Young and Stewie Dew though!!! WOW

 

[PrideOf]

Surely this is the Shane Ellen thread.

16 goals across 7 seasons.

5 goals in the whole of season 1997.

All 5 of them on Grand Final Day.

 

[Fourthawn]

It may have been Stuart Dew's best career quarter in 2008 but it wasn't his best overall game.
Prior to joining Hawthorn he would tear us a new one every time he played us. He also kicked six goals in a game several times in his career.

 

[Timmy from Thomastown]

Ted Hopkins trumps Shane Ellen. Four goals in half a game.

 

[DickDunn]

Josh P Kennedy has had plenty of great games but last year's gf would have to be up there - can't remember too many individual performances in a gf as good as that. Carried them magnificently in the first half especially.

Jetta had one of his better games in 2012 too

 

[smasha]

Kevin Bartlett was a big game player,the bigger the game,the better he played.
Instrumental in setting up our premierships.

 

[Timmy from Thomastown]

Kevin Bartlett was a big game player,the bigger the game,the better he played.
Instrumental in setting up our premierships.

Yeah but he played 9653 games. Hard to pick out one and say that unequivocally that was his best.

I prefer to look at lesser lights who had one decent game in their careers, eg Ellen Dear and Hopkins.

 

[smasha]

Yeah but he played 9653 games. Hard to pick out one and say that unequivocally that was his best.

He played his best in the games that counted.

 

[Timmy from Thomastown]

He played his best in the games that counted.

Not the thread topic though.

Then we are talking about Bartlett Johnson Picken Brereton McLeod etc. SLightly different list imo

 

[smasha]

SEN will die when KB retires,then we will have to listen to deadpan knobs playing their grand finals against Richmond every two mins.

 

[marty36]

Not the thread topic though.

Then we are talking about Bartlett Johnson Picken Brereton McLeod etc. SLightly different list imo

Id like to say Mcleod but he was elite at other times, he would have played a more oustanding H and A game but was definetly good in theGF but was always good, probs not different to KB and brereton, this threads more about so so players who pulled it out of their arse when it counted

Adelaides Shane Ellen was the best he ever played he kicked 5 and although he played some time at full forward in that game he kicked most of the goals playing of the HBF in that game, Blighty definetly had a huge influence on that game with the use of Ellen, but Ellen had to execute it and did

 

[Byron_Clanger]

Could you put Embley in there? I suppose..

 

[footyfan1978]

Probably his best or close to it. That blind turn, wowee

Same game, Billy Duckworth went ok

Leon Baker blind turn was epic moment in that granny.

But he was one talented gun. Other games he starred in too. Might have been week before Bombers destroyed Pies by 144 points in preliminary final. That team was flying with Leon Baker and other stars on fire.
One of my favourite players to watch from another club.

 

[footyfan1978]

Ted Hopkins trumps Shane Ellen. Four goals in half a game.

In front of the biggest crowd ever in the most famous comeback ever.
Would have been awesome to be born earlier to see such a day at the football.

 

[benji2]

Bob Keddie 1971?

On D5833 using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Partridge]

He kicked 11 one day against Richmond with broken ribs. That was his best game by a country mile.

As much as it pains me - older Bomber fans. Leon Baker?

I'd nominate a slightly different category - Grand Finals right up there with a player's best performances.

Into that category I'd put Mooney and Tom Harley from 2007, and Brad Sewell in 2008. All three were very good players, who played tons of excellent games, but to me those Grand Finals were as good as they contributed.

 

[topdon]

Paul Barnard (2000 GF)

 

[Chuckie357]

Surely this is another Zac Dawson thread in disguise

 

[J_Moore]

Both those players would say that game was the best they had played individually. Perhaps its because a grand final sticks in peoples memories more than a H&A game, but regardless, I've seen plenty of Swans games and never seen those two play better. If i were to have said someone like Hannabery or Goodes who both also had quality performances in 2012, you would have a point.

Most important, almost definitely.

But Malceski had games where he'd rack up 30-odd touches and seemingly set up a goal with every kick. The GF was notable for two fairly arsey goals.

RoK basically played as a tagger and brute-force clearance player, and his two previous finals & the West Coast game were probably better examples of that role. A godly amount of tackles were laid, though (he was a beast all through 2012, frankly). He played much classier games earlier in his career of the HFF - whether that's 'better' or not is debatable, though.

 

[Stevi_Tigers]

mitch morton

 

[Tyler Hodges]

Most important, almost definitely.

But Malceski had games where he'd rack up 30-odd touches and seemingly set up a goal with every kick. The GF was notable for two fairly arsey goals.

RoK basically played as a tagger and brute-force clearance player, and his two previous finals & the West Coast game were probably better examples of that role. A godly amount of tackles were laid, though (he was a beast all through 2012, frankly). He played much classier games earlier in his career of the HFF - whether that's 'better' or not is debatable, though.

That was definately O'keefes best game, according to myself anyhow. He completely shut down the norm smith favourite and got leather poisoning, a perfect game regardless of how ugly it was, maybe I just really rate two way midfielders who knows.

 

[Topkent]

How to contribute to thread
Mention player who played well in a GF from a team you don't support
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Mentioning players like Goddard is just stupid, sure he had a ripper GF but he played a lot of good games for stkilda

 

[telsor]

Maurice Rioli.

Played a lot of good games, but when you win the Norm Smith in a losing GF it's got to be contender for his best.

 

[Jables]

Xavier Ellis and Clinton Young played out of their skin in 08, injury may have ruined their potential but I'm not super convinced they were always flawed in different ways, Ellis didn't have the body and Young didn't have the drive. Paul Dear. Not Schoenmakers he played at that level the whole finals series.

Malceski was pulling some BS in 2012, they lowered the difficulty so his goal kicking chance was at 100%

 

[McOrist]

Bob Keddie 1971?

On D5833 using BigFooty.com mobile app

Good call. He basically won the game for the Hawks with his 4 goals in the last Q. Keddie twice won the BnF in his career at Hawthorn, so he must have played quite a number of great games -but that last Q in the'71 GF is why he is remembered.
He worked in coaching and footy admin after he finished playing. He was the responsible for establishing the Vickick /Auskick program.