“It was Richmond against the world today – and we won . . . ”

That’s what Tommy Hafey told a jubilant crowd of Richmond supporters and officials at the Melbourne Town House on Grand Final night 1974, after guiding the Tigers to their ninth VFL/AFL premiership (and his fourth as coach).

Richmond had scored a comprehensive 41-point victory over the Ron Barassi-led North Melbourne, which was shooting for its first-ever league flag.

Going into that last Saturday in September ’74, there was an enormous groundswell of support for the Kangaroos, who had been ‘cellar-dwellars’ for many years until Barassi took over their coaching reins in 1973. Barassi immediately lifted the Roos to the fringes of the finals, before taking them all the way into the ‘big one’ the following year.

Seemingly, everyone in the football world, bar those of the Yellow and Black persuasion, was hoping for an historic North Melbourne victory that sunny Saturday afternoon of September 28, 1974.

The Tigers were the villains of the piece, having ruthlessly disposed of Carlton 12 months earlier in a bruising Grand Final battle, which had been punctuated by Neil Balme’s ‘battering’ of the Blues’ backmen, Geoff Southby, Vin Waite and Kevin Hall.

Then, in May 1974, Richmond’s reputation for ruthlessness and ruggedness went up another notch, when an almighty brawl erupted right on the half-time siren in the clash with Essendon at Windy Hill. Legendary Tiger administrator, Graeme Richmond, was subsequently suspended for the rest of the ’74 season for his part in the Windy Hill brawl, with players Mal Brown and Stephen Parsons also being rubbed out, for one match and four matches respectively.

The upshot of this was that Richmond (the club) used the harsh penalty on Richmond (the official) as an added spur in its quest for back-to-back premierships and, by the time Grand Final day came around, the Tigers were, indeed, ready to take on the world.

Two weeks earlier, Hafey’s Heroes had disposed of Barassi’s boys by 21 points in a low-scoring encounter out at Waverley Park. The Roos bounced back in the preliminary final to narrowly defeat Hawthorn, and set up an epic showdown with Richmond for the ’74 premiership.

Here’s how the newspapers of the day recorded the glorious Tiger triumph of ’74  . . .

In ‘The Herald’, doyen of football writers, Alf Brown, reported:

“Richmond won their second successive premiership at the MCG today when they easily defeated North Melbourne.

Richmond were too strong in the ruck, won in the air and had matchwinners in Royce Hart and Kevin Sheedy.

They would have won by a greater margin, but for poor kicking early in the match.

The premiership was a triumph for Richmond coach Tom Hafey who had to nurse his side over two idle Saturdays and bring them into this game in top condition.

Another man who shares the triumph is former Richmond defender and now club surgeon, Mr Brian Davie.

After last year’s Grand Final, he operated on the knees of Hart, Balme, Richardson and Bourke and today the four were in my best players.

North tried hard, but did not have enough talent or big men to tame the tough, talented, never-stop-bumping and running Tigers.

Richmond led by 19 points at the start of the last quarter and sewed up the game with five goals before North kicked one . . .”


‘Sunday Observer’ sports editor, Mike Worner, wrote:

“The Richmond players drained the 1974 premiership cup of champagne, then supporters filled it with money.

It was symbolic. Champagne footballers delivering the goods for the second year in a row to supporters who have dug deep into their pockets.

“We earned this bastard, I reckon,” president Ian Wilson shouted to a beaming supporter.

And Graeme Richmond, the man they call the Tiger martyr, agreed that it was the most satisfying flag of all.

“We played on the field as we have fought off the field – for a premiership this year,” he said.

And they did everything right for a Grand Final crowd of 113,839.

They had to do it with almost all of those people against them. They kicked with the sound of “boos” ringing in their ears.

They missed many early goals with the sound of cheers and jeers ringing in their ears.

Eventually – except for support from their own kind – they kicked their goals, took their marks, gave their handpasses . . . and cut the Kangaroos to pieces almost in silence.

Such was the feeling for North – the underdog – that great players like Kevin Bartlett, Royce Hart and Francis Bourke found themselves being heckled.

And the arch “villain” of the piece, utility player Kevin Sheedy, snarled louder, played better, tore more fiercely into the packs the more they cried for his blood.

Perhaps there is hate in their hearts on the field, but it is love for their club, Richmond, that gives the Tigers the stuff that premierships are made of . . .”
 

Geoff Poulter, writing in ‘Inside Football’, had this to say about Richmond’s resounding success:

“There was a touch of irony in the way Kevin Sheedy went about shattering the impossible dream of Ron Barassi, the coach.

The “modern-day Barassi” did to North Melbourne what Ron Barassi the player, had inflicted upon his rivals in Melbourne’s famous Grand Final sides of the 1950s and early 1960s.

No one would suggest that every Richmond member didn’t play his part, but to my mind, Sheedy – complete footballer in every respect – was the man who got things moving.

And he got things moving the way Barassi used to do in his heyday.

Irrespective of any comparisons between Barassi the player and Sheedy the player, the Richmond trouble-shooter possesses all those intangible qualities that go together to make a thorough all-round “pressure” player.

Sheedy’s reputation is built round the fact that he’s always there when things are tight.

And he was in Saturday’s Grand Final – there with his strength, his courage, his professional football know-how, his fitness. Inspiring, tormenting, stirring, driving, wanting to win.

These are all the ingredients that make Sheedy (and made Barassi) a ruthless, irresistible football force.

When North were at the peak of their momentum, and had raced to an 11-point lead 10 minutes into the second quarter, it was time for Kevin Sheedy to come to the rescue.

He called upon the much under-rated Paul Sproule – switched to the centre – and the mercurial Royce Hart to help him put an end to the rot.

And 15 minutes and six goals later, the North defence had become rattled, and the Tigers were marching triumphantly to another flag.

The Roos were suddenly out of business for 1974 – stunned by a great Tiger football machine, and probably one of the greatest teams of all time.

Sheedy, Sproule, and Hart led the charge; Gareth Andrews, Kevin Morris, Francis Bourke, Robert McGhie, and Dick Clay kept the rear intact.

And further afield Neil Balme, Michael Green, Wayne Walsh, Kevin Bartlett and later Barry Richardson (5.1) stood tall.

In contrast to the superb teaming, handball, backing up and close understanding of the close-knit Tigers, the raw Roos looked a disjointed rabble.

They fought hard in a desperate third quarter to try to win back control

It was a total effort in this term, and North had their measure of success – but it was only partial . . . this supreme surge produced only 3.1 to 2.6, and reduced the deficit from 20 to 19 points.

Then in the last quarter they wilted while the Tigers forged on.

North had a few players who didn’t perform to their reputation, and others who were basically just not good enough.

They certainly didn’t play as well as they had in some other pressure games through the year, and 41 points was an unkind margin.

But remember Richmond had 38 shots to 22, and six more by quarter-time when they led by only a goal . . . 

There were suggestions that North should have gambled more – knowing that the orthodox hadn’t been sufficient to beat Richmond in three previous meetings.

But overall, it is clear that the Roos were ill-equipped to handle the might of Richmond, egged on by much anti-Tiger feeling.

They had performed an amazing feat just to be there, a mere two years after they had finished last with one win.

The rags-to-riches dream might have been shattered, but it will be repaired and improved upon in 1975 if the North Melbourne professional administration continues to build up their stocks at the same rate as that of the past two years.

Anything less than the previous impetus from the Roos’ movement will again be insufficient to challenge the Tiger Kings, which will certainly not slacken in their taste for more and more spoils.

The Tigers naturally have minor weaknesses, but far fewer than any other club.

They have recruited so strongly, their other sides will continue to provide them with ready-made League material.

And their “veterans” are no older than North’s experienced men.

Richmond have opened a new era in football which has lasted so long – and will last longer – because of their attitude towards HATING defeat . . .”

Meanwhile, renowned Hawthorn coach, John Kennedy (who at that stage of his coaching career had led the Hawks to two premierships), was glowing in his praise of the Tigers’ performance. In his finals column in ‘The Age’, Kennedy wrote:

“Richmond’s handpassing and kicking in Saturday’s Grand Final was as near to perfection as you can get. 

As Hawthorn coach, that was my outstanding impression of the game.

That handball and positional kicking are the two things that helped Richmond most – and the two things I’d like to bring to Hawthorn.

The way Tom Hafey has his side playing makes Richmond the envy of every other league club.

Richmond played a wonderful, natural game. It is no wonder players from other clubs want to go to Richmond. Their style of football is so attractive.

Before the game, I thought North Melbourne could win. I felt Richmond, particularly players like Royce Hart and Barry Richardson, who have had serious injuries, could have been a little rusty.

By quarter-time, I felt it was obvious that Richmond would win by a big margin. It looked a much better side, both in ability and strength.

It was all to North’s credit that they came back at Richmond in the second and third quarters. 

But honestly, North never really looked like going on with it. That last quarter showed they just weren’t up to it.

Overall, Richmond was a much more accomplished side. Its ruckmen, Neil Balme and Michael Green, were too strong. Only Barry Goodingham could compete with them and the odds were very much against him.

There were some outstanding individual achievements by Richmond players.

Kevin Sheedy’s display had everything – great skill, great courage and fanatical determination.

His handpass to Green in the goal square was a good example – cool, but daring. Had he been off-line with the handpass, the ball would have gone through for a point.

He fooled everyone. Every North Melbourne player seemed to go to sleep for a second. But it was the sort of mistake that any team, even the best, can make.

Royce Hart was another. He played a great game at centre half-forward. His kicking was tremendous and North had no answer.

Even when North was attacking, Hart was dropping back to the centre picking up kicks. That’s not fair. No coach expects a centre half-forward to do that . . .”


Tommy Hafey, understandably, was ecstatic with the result . . .

“It’s a tremendous feeling to win two in-a-row and every Richmond player deserves credit. I don’t want to individualise. It was a team effort and I think this told on North in the finish,” he said. 

An equally-delighted Tiger captain and champion centre half-forward, Royce Hart, couldn’t resist looking ahead to the 1975 season . . .  “Now we have the chance to go on and win three flags in-a-row. I was tremendously proud to be able to play in this one. I think this team is good enough to go on to another one. It was a great team effort.”

Match details
Richmond           3.8       10.11     12.17     18.20 (128)
North Melbourne   3.2      8.3       11.4       13.9 (87)

Goals – Richmond: Richardson 5, Hart 3, Balme 2, Sheedy 2, Green 2, Cumming, Walsh, Thorpe, Cloke.
Best – Richmond: Sheedy, Hart, Sproule, Morris, Green, Walsh, Andrews, McGhie.
 

Richmond player stats
No. 1 – D. Cumming: 3 kicks, 11 handballs, 1 mark, 1 goal
No. 4 – R. Hart: 19 kicks, 4 handballs, 5 marks, 3 goals
No. 5 – G. Andrews: 11 kicks, 3 handballs, 7 marks
No. 6 – P. Sproule: 17 kicks, 7 handballs, 6 marks,
No. 7 – W. Walsh: 16 kicks, 3 handballs, 5 marks, 1 goal
No. 8 – D. Clay: 9 kicks, 0 handballs, 2 marks
No. 10 – K. Sheedy: 18 kicks, 12 handballs, 7 marks, 2 goals
No. 12 – R. McGhie: 7 kicks, 3 handballs, 6 marks
No. 14 – D. Thorpe: 16 kicks, 6 handballs, 1 mark, 1 goal
No. 16 – B. Wood: 6 kicks, 3 handballs, 2 marks
No. 17 – B. Richardson: 8 kicks, 1 handball, 3 marks, 5 goals
No. 21 – N. Balme: 10 kicks, 2 handballs, 3 marks, 2 goals
No. 29 – K. Bartlett: 24 kicks, 0 handballs, 1 mark,
No. 30 – F. Bourke: 17 kicks, 2 handballs, 1 mark
No. 33 – D. Cloke: 4 kicks, 1 handball, 2 marks, 1 goal
No. 37 – M. Green: 8 kicks, 3 handballs, 6 marks, 2 goals
No. 38 – K. Morris: 14 kicks, 3 handballs, 0 marks
No. 40 – M. Keane: 9 kicks, 0 handballs, 1 mark
No. 43 – C. Clayton (19^th man): 0 kicks, 1 handball, 0 marks
No. 15 – B. Roberts (20^th man): 0 kicks, 0 handballs, 0 marks