They set out from all parts of Australia - Perth, Robe, Mildura, Tassie, etc.
They had one destination in their sights - Punt Road.
And, they had one purpose in mind - to sign a limited-edition set of replica Richmond 1980 premiership jumpers.
They, of course, were my 1980 premiership teammates - 17 of them. Sadly, another two - Terry Smith and Peter Welsh - are no longer with us in a physical sense, having passed away during the past few years.
My job, on behalf of the Club, was to co-ordinate the signings, which took place at our Punt Road headquarters over a period of several weeks.
Click here to grab your signed and framed 1980 memorabilia piece. But hurry, there are limited numbers remaining
None of my old teammates had any hesitation in agreeing to the request and, then, readily making themselves available for the signing session.
Rob Wiley and Darryl Freame flew over from Perth, ‘The Ghost’, Jimmy Jess, put his cray-fishing on hold and drifted down from Robe in South Australia, ‘The General’, Mark Lee, left his handcuffs and baton at the police station in Mildura, and made the trek, while Stephen Mount caught the Spirit of Tasmania across Bass Strait.
The morning after Collingwood had drawn with Melbourne in the Queen’s Birthday Monday clash, Magpie coach, and our back pocket in that ’80 premiership triumph, Mick Malthouse, happily strolled across Olympic Boulevard, from the Westpac Centre, to sign the 80 jumpers in the Punt Road Boardroom. And, he felt quite comfortable to be back at Tigerland, too.
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of that magnificent 1980 Grand Final triumph over our arch-rival, Collingwood, the Club commissioned a superb, framed memorabilia item. It features an old-style, woollen Richmond jumper, which was a copy of the one I wore throughout the ’80 season, photos of each member of the premiership side, plus a write-up of the Grand Final, with match details and stats.
There is a limit of only 80 pieces for sale. Each one comes individually numbered, with a certificate of authenticity and an a-tag. The cost is $1995 each, with 2010 Richmond members receiving a special discount price of $1795.
I’m delighted that each member of the 1980 premiership side, and our coach, Tony Jewell, will also be given this magnificent memento, in recognition, along with the families of ‘Brutus’ (Terry Smith) and ‘Woosha’ (Peter Welsh).
Brilliant memories of that 1980 season will shine forever in the minds of those Richmond players, coaches, officials and supporters, who lived through it.
The Tigers dominated the competition that year, playing a very exciting brand of football. We scored 100 points or more in 18 of the 25 games we played and, in fact, kicked 25 goals on five occasions, achieving a Club record total of 34.18 (222) against St Kilda at the SCG in Round 16.
‘Disco’ (Michael Roach) became just the second player in Richmond’s history (Jack Titus was the first) to kick 100 goals in a season, while David Cloke (47 goals), Kevin Bartlett (84 goals), our captain, Bruce Monteath (43 goals), Robbie Wiley (29 goals) and Barry Rowlings (21), were also very productive around the big sticks for us.
I see similarities between that triumphant Tiger team of 1980 and the current one under Damien Hardwick in terms of the players’ ages and their football development.
In the ’80 premiership side, we had several players who had only about 50 games worth of experience - the likes of General, Disco, ‘Strachany’ (Greg Strachan), ‘Plod’ (Emmett Dunne) and myself - and few others with even less than that - ‘Mounty’, ‘Freamey’, ‘Smithy’, and Rob Wiley (even though he’d played quite a few in the WAFL).
Admittedly, we were surrounded by some top-line, experienced players in KB, ‘Bourkey’ (Francis Bourke), Merv Keane, ‘Woody’ (Bryan Wood), Clokey, ‘Bazza’ Rowlings, Mick Malthouse and Bruce Monteath. It was, however, something special for us young blokes to come through the ranks together at the Club, and then go on to achieve the ultimate.
I get the distinct feeling that the Tigers of 2010 are, likewise, building towards something special of their own . . .
