With Richmond’s pre-season match against Collingwood on February 27 raising funds for Foodbank, let’s dig back through our history to unearth five previous occasions where the Tigers helped out the community with a football game.
1891
The 1891 flood, as seen from corner of Brunton Ave and Punt Road.
The Richmond Ground is out frame to the left.
Our earliest charity match appears to be the July 18th 1891 VFA contest against North Melbourne at the Richmond Cricket Ground.
One week earlier the Yarra River broke its banks and flooded South Yarra and Richmond suburbs, including our ground.
With the attendance described as ‘only moderate’, the 60 pounds of gate receipts received from the game were donated to the Flood Relief Fund, along with the proceeds of some 3000 special tickets issued during the week at 1 shilling each.
FOODBANK DONATION | Every $1 received, will provide 2 meals for someone in need
(Spectators paid to attend this game rather than using their existing membership ticket).
The match itself wasn’t played in the best of manner. The Weekly Times called it “so rough that it were better to leave it without comment. Were it not that the players and club authorities generously devoted the entire proceeds to the Flood Relief Fund, I should have been disposed to ignore the match altogether.”
Music was provided at the game by the Richmond City Band, and the Bennett’s Cordial Factory Band.
1893
Two years later at 8pm on Wednesday August 30 1893, Richmond played Collingwood (both VFA teams at the time), under electric light (!) at the Richmond Racecourse as part of a festival to raise funds for the distressed and unemployed of the suburb.
It was the first night game between the two footy rivals.
The 1893 advertisement read “the great novelty of a senior football match by electric light.”
1905
On October 16 1905 the two teams met again for charity – both at the height of their powers – Richmond having won the VFA Premiership one week earlier, and Collingwood being VFL Runners Up two weeks earlier.
The match was held for the Epileptic Colony Fund, on the request of Lady Madden and Sir John Madden, a patron of Collingwood and the Chief Justice of Victoria.
2,000 spectators attended and a total of 53 pounds in gate takings were raised.
1921
From the Numurkah Leader newspaper, June 29 1921.
Midway through Richmond’s 1921 premiership season, the club visited the town of Numurkah to play in a charity match against the Goulburn Valley Football Association to raise funds for the Mooroopna Hospital.
The idea came from former Kyabram and Richmond footballer George Parkinson.
Richmond paid the expenses of all its players, and in total the match raised over 150 pounds which included the selling of ‘official scoring cards’, and a ‘guessing competition’.
The following day the Richmond footballers hosted two tarpaulin musters (think of it as a whip around) which netted a further 23 pounds.
1942
During World War II, Richmond organised and participated in many fundraising events for the patriotic funds.
On July 12th 1942 they played a Combined Services Team at the Punt Road ground.
Prime Minister John Curtain telegraphed his best wishes for the event.
The Richmond side was made up of its 1942 senior team (i.e.: Dyer, Titus etc), plus Keith Stackpole snr and Noel Price from Fitzroy “to get over the VFL ban on its clubs playing Sunday football.”
The Combined Services Team included iconic names such as Bob Pratt, Laurie Nash, Ron Todd, Allan La Fontaine, Alby Pannam, Stan Judkins, Jack Mueller, Phonse Kyne, and Ollie Grieve.
Richmond 20.13.133 defeated the Combined Services 19.11.125 in front of a crowd of 25,000 which raised 856 pounds. Jack Titus kicked 8 goals and Pratt 7.
The amount was split 50/50 between the Richmond Prisoners of War Fund, and the Red Cross and Comforts Fund.
“An officer of the High Command who was at Sunday’s match said he was delighted with the game and the manner in which the big crowd appreciated it. He thought that Sunday football under such conditions in aid of war funds should be continued.” (The Age July 14)
But the event wasn’t without distraction behind the scenes.
The League were unhappy that Richmond hadn’t consulted with them prior to the fixturing of the fundraiser.
