Your top five memories of Kardinia Park

[Commando]

I went to that game too.. was at Princes Park and the cats won by a point...1994, Ablett needed 2, pretty sure he got both from free kicks and did nothing else for the day

Bit off topic but I was there as well! Remember he kicked it at the heatly stand end (I was at the other forward pocket)

I'm pretty sure Abletts 100's were vs NM 1993 MCG, vs NM 1994 OO, vs SYD 1995 KP, and 1000th vs FREO 1996 KP

I may have posted this before but I remember vividly running on the ground in 1994 with a mate, Buddha Hocking told us to "piss off and get off the ground" to which I replied "hey Garry my cousin says hi" (they were old cobram mates) to which he answered "oh..really?, say hi to him for me" hahaha classic!

 

[Shell]

I went to that game too.. was at Princes Park and the cats won by a point...1994, Ablett needed 2, pretty sure he got both from free kicks and did nothing else for the day

Yup both from frees, and iirc the second was right before half time!!!

Lucky!

 

[Shell]

I may have posted this before but I remember vividly running on the ground in 1994 with a mate, Buddha Hocking told us to "piss off and get off the ground" to which I replied "hey Garry my cousin says hi" (they were old cobram mates) to which he answered "oh..really?, say hi to him for me" hahaha classic!

Aw, I'm disappointed he said that.

Love the ground invasion for a 100th goal. I think its unique to our game, and nothing "bad" has ever happened with these- not yet anyway, lol.

 

[Commando]

Aw, I'm disappointed he said that.

Love the ground invasion for a 100th goal. I think its unique to our game, and nothing "bad" has ever happened with these- not yet anyway, lol.

To be fair everybody runs on but ambles off.... Haha
And this was before the days of the teams 'huddling up' during a long stoppage.

Back on to KP, my first visit was pretty memorable, we beat Essendon (late 93) think it was the last time we've played them there. What an exciting team with Gazza in full flight!

My last game was also memorable, the draw vs Melbourne (2006? Lonergan injury game)

Man I've really got to get down again to a game there soon, I was last at the 'wake" in 08 (bloody missed the THREE flag celebrations!....pfft work )

 

[Shell]

To be fair everybody runs on but ambles off.... Haha
And this was before the days of the teams 'huddling up' during a long stoppage.

Some people even start having a kick to kick!!!

Hilarious, only in our game...

 

[Shell]

Back on to KP, my first visit was pretty memorable, we beat Essendon (late 93) think it was the last time we've played them there. What an exciting team with Gazza in full flight!

)

Oh, I remember that game. I missed it cause I was sick.
We beat them by about 4 goals?

I cant even remember my first KP game- obviously can recall my first game ever, v Essendon at MCG that same year. Hmmm.. would have to see a draw from 1993 to figure out the first KP game, lol.

 

[Otto2Gaz]

Watching Stephen Reynoldson taking a screamer in one of his first games and thinking he was going to be the next Royce Hart.

Watching Sammy running to the bench for his 300th.

Buying used Sherrin footys off the property steward at training for $5 in the late 70s.

Standing with my mates near the hot-dog stand and wind sock on the wing.

Jostling through the crowd underneath the old scoreboard to get to the hot-dog stand and wind sock on the wing.

Filling cans up with pebbles and then taking them to the Alcoa man.

The day after the 07 GF was magic.

 

[Shell]

Another one! (Not exclusive to KP back then but still..)

After a goal was kicked, the CS would go nuts chucking ripped up bits of paper and streamers. Was like some ****ing explosion lol.

Miss that!!!!

 

[FredLeDeux]

Another one! (Not exclusive to KP back then but still..)

After a goal was kicked, the CS would go nuts chucking ripped up bits of paper and streamers. Was like some ****ing explosion lol.

Miss that!!!!

Coming up to the 63 GF, one of my teachers confiscated my bags of torn-up paper (may have had something to do with my doing the tearing up in class), but my dad went down and spoke to the Geelong-supporting headmaster and got them back.

 

[Shell]

Coming up to the 63 GF, one of my teachers confiscated my bags of torn-up paper (may have had something to do with my doing the tearing up in class), but my dad went down and spoke to the Geelong-supporting headmaster and got them back.

Lol, back in 63 they were confiscating ripped up bits of paper in school???

Now its mobiles, ipod and iphones, guns* etc. How times have changed.

*American schools only.

 

[FredLeDeux]

Hasn't really changed all that much, they would have confiscated it if you had taken your record player to school.

 

[Strangled Cat]

1. Ablett kicking is 1000th goal against Freo in 95. Sitting near the back of the Doug Wade stand I was one of the last kids (I was actually nudging my teenage years then but eh who's keeping count?) to make it on the ground so I didn't get near Gazza but it was still an awesome experience.

2. Beating Brisbane in 2004. That to me was a real changing of the guard moment for me. I honestly felt like we could take on anyone at our fortress. For probably the first time since watching our star laden but nonetheless unsuccessful team of the 80's and 90's, I knew that we had a team to be excited about.

3. 93 v Hawthorn. Not being brought up with AFL being a first generation Aussie from immagrint parents who had no interest initially in AFL, I didn't go to many games as a youngster. This was actually my first game of AFL that I ever went to. To say that I enjoyed watching footy on TV was an understatement would be the same as saying that I had an absolute blast that day was a captain-bloody-obvious statement! Wow, what a first game to have gone to. That last quarter was epic!

4. 2004 v St. Kilda when we won by about 7 points or so. There was a lot of trash talking that year from both sides, and from memory Paul Chapman said after our night GF loss to them that we have more talent than them or something along those lines. It was a very good win and put us right on top of the pecking order for emerging young teams.

5. 2005 beating Adelaide by 4 points. This was significant to me as it was more personal than anything. It was the first time that I had returned to Geelong since moving to Adelaide in March of that year. I went to the game with my girlfriend (now my wife) and the mother-in-law who both came over from SA to watch their beloved Crows. After the game my fiery girlfriend cracked the sads as I was giving her shit and she didn't talk to me for the rest of the night. God bless her soul!

 

[jazzee]

I have been to KP once. A lifelong cats fan but just never got down there for a game. Heck, I saw us win in a GF before I went to a home game.

We were playing Sydney, I met up with a bunch of mates, keen with anticipation and we duly lost for the first time in five years.

I have been banned from further attendance at KP.

 

[iameviljez]

4. 2004 v St. Kilda when we won by about 7 points or so. There was a lot of trash talking that year from both sides, and from memory Paul Chapman said after our night GF loss to them that we have more talent than them or something along those lines. It was a very good win and put us right on top of the pecking order for emerging young teams.

Yes, and right after he said it StKilda came out and pantsed us by 10 goals in Round One.

To be honest, StKilda were a slightly better team than us that year - they went within a worm's willy of beating Port on their own turf in the Prelim and in Gherig and Riewoldt, they had talent up forward that we couldn't even dream of.

We did take a few years to catch up to StKilda.

 

[SJ]

Yes, and right after he said it StKilda came out and pantsed us by 10 goals in Round One.

To be honest, StKilda were a slightly better team than us that year - they went within a worm's willy of beating Port on their own turf in the Prelim and in Gherig and Riewoldt, they had talent up forward that we couldn't even dream of.

We did take a few years to catch up to StKilda.

Correct. St Kilda was a slightly better team than Geelong in 2004, and clearly a better team than Geelong in 2005. The Saints should have won the flag in 2005.

 

[Shell]

I have been banned from further attendance at KP.

It wasnt your fault.

It was those dipshits at the Geelong Advertiser for making those posters!!!! And perhaps it had something to do with Sydney playing a good game of footy, lol.

 

[Partridge]

Yes, and right after he said it StKilda came out and pantsed us by 10 goals in Round One.

To be honest, StKilda were a slightly better team than us that year - they went within a worm's willy of beating Port on their own turf in the Prelim and in Gherig and Riewoldt, they had talent up forward that we couldn't even dream of.

We did take a few years to catch up to StKilda.

Yeah, but they didn't. And they were no more close to beating Port than we were beating Brisbane. The interesting thing is the head to head record for every year from 2003 -2006 - when St.Kilda were THE darling of the football world was 1-1. So they were very evenly matched although they had the best list ever.

It wasn't until we started winning premierships that people realised that St.Kilda maybe weren't the best side to ever play the game.

 

[Shell]

Correct. St Kilda was a slightly better team than Geelong in 2004, and clearly a better team than Geelong in 2005. The Saints should have won the flag in 2005.

Were St kilda the "Geelong" of the 2000s perhaps- like we were the Geelong of the 90s.

If that makes any sense whatsoever..

 

[SJ]

Were St kilda the "Geelong" of the 2000s perhaps- like we were the Geelong of the 90s.

If that makes any sense whatsoever..

In terms of the 'so close yet so far', yes. They were extremely close to premierships in 2004, 2005, 2009 and 2010.

 

[iameviljez]

Yeah, but they didn't. And they were no more close to beating Port than we were beating Brisbane. The interesting thing is the head to head record for every year from 2003 -2006 - when St.Kilda were THE darling of the football world was 1-1. So they were very evenly matched although they had the best list ever.

Don't kid yourself, they were a lot closer to the flag that year than we. They took Port to within a straight kick on their own deck (and Port was a better side than Brisbane that year), we were lacking a little polish in a game that should never have been played at the G. Don't forget that Port flogged us silly at Footy Park just a fortnight before StKilda almost pinched the game.

Were St kilda the "Geelong" of the 2000s perhaps- like we were the Geelong of the 90s.

If that makes any sense whatsoever..

Yes, it does... in terms of the notion that they should have won a flag (especially in 2005 and 2009, as SJ points out), but didn't.

There were a few sliding door moments at StKilda - they were unlucky with injuries to Matt Maguire, Kosi and Xavier Clarke, and shot themselves in the foot by not using Luke Ball properly on a wet GF day.

I also suspect that if they'd found a way to play slightly more attacking football under Lyon, they would have better capitalised on their dominance in the first half that day. They had, in my opinion, the equal best centre-half forward in the game since Carey (the other is J.Brown), plus Milne, and Kosi who was having a good year. They never played to Riewoldt's strengths.

 

[Hood007]

In terms of the 'so close yet so far', yes. They were extremely close to premierships in 2004, 2005, 2009 and 2010.

7 goals to 0 last qtr against them in 2005 prelim final would suggest that maybe they weren't extremely close...

 

[Partridge]

I also suspect that if they'd found a way to play slightly more attacking football under Lyon, they would have better capitalised on their dominance in the first half that day. They had, in my opinion, the equal best centre-half forward in the game since Carey (the other is J.Brown), plus Milne, and Kosi who was having a good year. They never played to Riewoldt's strengths.

Disagree completely. Their more defensive mindset and gameplan under Lyon was the whole reason they were there on Grand Final day. They'd been obliterated in the finals in 2008 by both us and Hawthorn with basically the same list.

Riewoldt had his chances Grand Final day, both in 2009 and twice in 2010. There were no excuses then and aren't now. He simply wasn't good enough when it mattered. Milne and Kosi in finals? Laughable.

 

[PremierCatAttack]

My5

• Scarlo's first game. Does anyone remember (or was part of) a group of ppl that wore 'Scarlo' wigs to KP? True cult figure.
• Mark Blakes first goal after so many attempts - didn't love Blakey as much as some others but him kicking a goal that day was very satisfying for some reason.
• Last home game of 07 - I am still dirty on Cassisi for that.
• Having half cat sit behind us in the old hickey stand.
• Unfurling of the 3 flags

Footy at KP was some of my greatest memories as a little tacker - it has only improved since! Tomorrow (hopefully) will dislodge one of them.

 

[iameviljez]

Riewoldt had his chances Grand Final day, both in 2009 and twice in 2010. There were no excuses then and aren't now. He simply wasn't good enough when it mattered.

I disagree with this. 2009 was wet and cramped, and Taylor played a ripping game. It wasn't a game for tall players - Mooney was probably the best tall on the day, and he wasn't greatly influential. Riewoldt was pretty reasonable in both 2010 games, and StKilda didn't manage to crack 40 I50s in either of them.

Milne and Kosi on the other hand did, as you pointed out, have a trio of shockers.

 

[Partridge]

I disagree with this. 2009 was wet and cramped, and Taylor played a ripping game. It wasn't a game for tall players - Mooney was probably the best tall on the day, and he wasn't greatly influential. Riewoldt was pretty reasonable in both 2010 games, and StKilda didn't manage to crack 40 I50s in either of them.

Milne and Kosi on the other hand did, as you pointed out, have a trio of shockers.

Maybe, I dunno. He seems to get excuses made for him an awful lot. Hawkins and Mooney managed 2 goals each and neither were at demi-god status like Riewoldt was.

He's got tremendous endurance, and ability to run all day which is rare if not unique among key forwards. But contrary to myth he's not a great contested mark and his kicking lets him down too.