That was when under-18 TAC Cup team Geelong Falcons produced a wave of players so good it could have been a bell-ringer – a special one – at Bells Beach.
Many of these fine juniors went on to form the nucleus of Geelong’s triumphant team last year, including Gary Ablett, Jimmy Bartel, Cameron Ling and Matthew Scarlett.
The former Falcon foursome finished first, second, third and fifth respectively in the 2007 best and fairest, and all were selected in the Victorian squad for the Hall of Fame Tribute Match. (Ling and Ablett have withdrawn through injury.)
Teammates from that heady Falcons era include Jonathan Brown, who is skippering the Victorian side; Nathan Foley, who has been rewarded for his excellent Richmond form with selection; and Luke Hodge, who was in the initial squad prior to his hamstring injury.
It was at the Falcons that Scarlett was switched from a forward or flanker to full-back.
“The last 10 years has gone so quick it’s unbelievable, but it’s great to be back playing with them,” the mop-haired defender said of his former underage teammates. “It’s good being with some Falcons, and good being part of this.
“Everyone wanted to play for Victoria as soon as they heard about it. Last week I was really motivated to do well to make sure I got picked.”
Scarlett said that he thought the club combinations and relationships built up by some of the Victorian players would hold the side in good stead against the Dream Team.
“Hopefully they are in a new side so they might not jell the same way as the blokes from Hawthorn, Geelong and [so on].”
For young Tiger Foley, training on the MCG in the Big white V was a reminder of other times when he has been a junior member of great sides.
“I didn’t get to play with most of these boys at Geelong under-18s but I trained with them as a 15-year-old,” he said. “That was pretty good, because there was a lot of talent around the place.
“Mick Turner does a great job, we’ve had a lot drafted from the Falcons, and it’s a pity Gary and Hodgey aren’t here. It’s a huge experience. It’s something I remember watching as a kid, I saw Gary Ablett senior play and it will be an unbelievable feeling.”
Bartel was just 16 when he won the Falcons’ best and fairest award in 2000. He has said in the past that, “to play with the best from Geelong down to Warrnambool was incredible. [That team] had some quality players across all lines. Just really good quality football.”
So, was there something magic in the Barwon water late last millennium? Michael Turner, regional manager of the Geelong Falcons, said that their program, “is recognised by people in the know as one of the best, if not the best development program going around. I believe that in terms of getting players into the AFL we are number one in Australia.
“It is a shame that there are blokes like Cameron Ling, Luke Hodge and Scott Lucas injured because we could have had seven or eight members of the Victorian team.
“I’m very proud of the players’ achievements. It is a fantastic thing for the Falcons.”
While acknowledging that it reflects well on his organisation, Turner is also careful to give credit to other key influences.
“You look at someone like Jonathan Brown and while we are very proud of his time with us, he has come out of South Warrnambool and you have to look at the input of that club, his early coaches and the input of his family,” he said.
Turner’s pleasure at seeing his former Falcon chicks grow into big birds with white V-necks reflects his own experiences with interstate football.
“I played 12 games for Victoria and as a young bloke it meant everything to me. We got to play with great players, you could up your contract, and it was viewed with a lot of passion. In my first game I was captained by Don Scott, I played with Bruce Doull and Robbie Flower, and it was just an absolute honour to be in a team with blokes like that.”
