Our special pre-season series on the wondrous journey from Punt Road Oval to the ME Bank Centre continues, with a match of David and Goliath-like magnitude at the famous venue.

Richmond pulled off one of the biggest boilovers in its league football history during the 1957 season.

It happened at Punt Road Oval in Round 7 of that season, with the Tigers stunning the all-conquering Melbourne team.

Melbourne, under the coaching guidance of the legendary Norm Smith, had won back-to-back premierships in 1955-56, and was well on track for another flag in 1957.

Six rounds into the ’57 season, the Demons were sitting on top of the ladder, with four wins and two losses, while Richmond was in second-last place (11^th), with two wins and four losses on the board.

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The Tigers had finished 10^th the previous year under the coaching guidance of 1943 premiership hero Max Oppy, and he’d been subsequently replaced as coach by Alan McDonald, who had been a member of the Club’s 1940 Grand Final side.

Richmond’s two wins at the start of the 1957 season had both been at home, but not even the most one-eyed Yellow and Black barracker could have envisaged the lowly Tigers toppling the dominant Demon combination.

A modest crowd of 18,000 settled into their vantage points at Punt Road Oval on the first day of winter, 1957, to watch, what was presumed would be, rather pedestrian proceedings unfold.

What they witnessed, however, was an upset of mammoth proportions . . .

With experienced players such as captain Des Rowe, Havel Rowe, dual Brownlow Medallist Roy Wright, Allan Cations and Ron Branton leading the way, the Tigers took the game right up to their highly-fancied opponents from the outset.

Scores were level at quarter-time and again at half-time.  Surely, though, the powerful Demons would respond to a decent rev-up during the long break from their fiery coach Norm Smith and run away from the home side.

Well, it wasn’t to be. 

With young Tigers like Ken Ward, Stan Morcom, Ray Allsop, Ted Langridge and Col Saddington following the lead of their more seasoned teammates, Richmond’s confidence soared.

The home side was assisted by Melbourne’s inaccuracy in the third term.  Eight shots for goal netted the Demons eight behinds and they trailed Richmond by six points at the last change in a tight, low-scoring battle.

But even at that stage, Tiger fans still found it difficult to dare to believe the ‘impossible dream’ could be turned into reality.

After all, this was the mighty Melbourne team that their Tigers were up against.  In 46 games from the start of the 1955 season up until Round 7, 1957, the Demons had an awesome winning strike-rate of 84.7%.  Richmond, in the corresponding period, had a winning strike-rate of just 40.4%.

The Tigers had been wonderfully gallant this day, but Melbourne just had that knack, as top teams do, of finding a way to win.

The last quarter continued the pattern of the match, with the Demons threatening to seize control, but Richmond steadfastly refusing to surrender.

With players from both sides out on their feet, and excited Tiger supporters roaring themselves hoarse, the final siren blared out.

Richmond had done the seemingly impossible, hanging on to beat Melbourne by two points.

The Tigers managed only one goal in that final term, but it was just enough to edge the Demons out.

It was the first time Richmond had beaten Melbourne in four years, and it was the lowest score any team had registered against the Tigers since 1948.

It also was a superb birthday present for a young gun Tiger ruckman by the name of Neville Crowe, who turned 20 on the day of what was his seventh league game.

Here’s how the ‘Football Record’ of June 8, 1957 summarised Richmond’s bold boilover win against Melbourne of the previous week. . .

“Ken Ward played a magnificent game for Richmond in the back pocket.  His pace, anticipation, judgment and clearing dashes often had the Demons nonplussed.  It was a match-winning effort.

Colin Saddington, who came on to replace (Brian) Davie, also distinguished himself with safe marking and long kicking.  

Stan Morcom gave the Tigers great drive from the centre, and Ron Branton was too elusive for the Melbourne defenders.  

Roy Wright marked grandly, kicked terrific distances and played a leading role in his team’s success.”

 Match details

Richmond            2.2          4.4          6.6          7.10  (52)

Melbourne         2.2          4.4          4.12        6.14  (50)

Goals – Richmond:  Allsop 2, Crowe 2, Wright 2, Langridge.

Best – Richmond:  Ward, Wright, Branton, Morcom, Saddington.

The Round 7, 1957 Tiger team

Allsop

Branton

Cations,

Crowe

Davie

Dunin

Flannagan

Langridge

R. McDonald

Morcom

P. Morris

Munro

Naismith

D. Rowe

H. Rowe

Ryan

Saddington

Simpson

Ward

Wright