The bottom-of-the-ladder Lions, without a win all year, were opposing glamour team Geelong, who would later go on to win that year’s premiership.
It was the ultimate case of David versus Goliath, with the underdog again proving victorious – 9.13 (67) to 3.13 (31).
What made the result even more remarkable was the fact that Fitzroy’s then captain/coach and heart and soul, Kevin Murray, was representing the ‘Big V’ in Adelaide that day, so was forced to hand the reins over to former-teammate-turned-reserves-coach Wally Clark.
It was Clark’s one and only senior match at the helm, and proved to be one of Fitzroy’s most memorable.
Murray, meanwhile, ended his coaching tenure with zero wins from 34 attempts, and still harbours some regret about not being able to share in the spoils of that particular victory with his beloved Club.
Last Wednesday evening, a little over 51 years since that ‘Miracle Match’, 10 of the players who represented Fitzroy on that day took a trip down memory lane as special guests at the latest Fitzroy-Brisbane Lions Historical Society function.
The function, which was hosted next door to where it all happened at the Fitzroy Bowls Club, corresponded with the official launch of ‘The Miracle Match’ – a book compiled by renowned sports writer Ken Piesse which provides a comprehensive account of not only the match itself, but the events leading up to it, and those that transpired afterwards.
A limited series of only 563 copies of ‘The Miracle Match’ have been published and are currently available for just $30.
Order your copy of ‘The Miracle Match’ today
John Bahen, Bob Beattie, Brian Beers, Norm Brown, Brian Carroll, Bryan Clements, John Hayes, Ian McCrae, Brian Pert, and David Sykes were all in attendance at the Historical Society event.
Please find below some of the comments that were shared on the evening:
“It was a really good day, everybody played well. All the boys got a kick and Lazzy (Gary Lazarus) got the goals. It was just a good game, and a good night afterwards if I recollect.”
- David Sykes
“It was fantastic, and a great tribute to Wally Clarke because it was really his match. He put it together, he structured it. The tactics he put together were completely relevant to both the game and the conditions. I remember Bryan Clements just hit the ball away from ‘Polly’ Farmer. That was the go, don’t let ‘Polly’ get the ball. Because if ‘Polly’ got the ball, then Billy (Goggin) got the ball and suddenly it’s in their goal square. So Bryan played a huge part in that day because he just deprived Geelong of any instigation away from packs. We had the home ground advantage, we had the crowd, and we had the momentum.”
- Brian Beers
“Before the game, Wally Clark invited all the supporters into the room for the pre-match address. I think that helped us on that particular day.”
- John Hayes
“It was just one of those days when we’d had such a putrid run, and Wally was such a loveable bloke and respected by everyone. I think everyone put their head down and bum up and said ‘let’s win it for Wally’. And that’s what happened. Everyone contributed. “
- John Bahen
“It was great for a number of reasons. One thing that I do remember about the day was after the match, to see so much pleasure in the Club. The biggest thing of the day for me was seeing the support staff enjoying it so much.”
- Brian Pert
“A key factor in us winning the game was how (Clark) mentally prepared us. The frame of mind we were in was just incredible. We went out there to face Goliath, and they went out there to face David, and that was the difference in the two teams. And that was all because of Wally Clark. I don’t remember running onto the ground, he just had us so worked up. We all played roles on the field, but Wally Clark was the star that day.”
- Bryan Clements
The next function will be held on Thursday 21 August when the Historical Society celebrates every Fitzroy best and fairest, with the likes of Martin Pike, Alastair Lynch, Paul Roos, Brad Boyd, Kevin Murray, Garry Wilson and many more former stars in attendance.
