How Melbourne Won The Flag, 1956

[bush demon 1,901]

I sent this to the club. Since they are selling a fancy photoshop mock-up of the 1956 Premiership group I thought that we could also have some actual facts about the game and its historical context. Then members such as myself may feel inclined to purchase their print-outs.

Hello,

I am a Melbourne member and enjoyed your digital image of Melbourne's premiership in the Olympics year of 1956. I was disappointed that your presentation didn't take in some of the passion and history of this grand day by adding some readily available archival material, which also to be in digital format.

I have attached, for your interest, some articles from The Melbourne Argus from Sep 17,1956.

How Melbourne Won The Flag

The Day The Demons Hit Form

By Percy Taylor

All this season Melbourne’s “brains trust” has been saying it would be “just a shame” what would happen to the opposition if all 18 players found form on the same day… And The Demons picked the grand final for such a day.. and what happened to Collingwood was really “just a shame”.

Players known to be potential stars have now got rid of the word “potential”. We saw the real Athol Webb, as full of quicksilver as of courage, and with ball handling ability plus. Now Melbourne know they have a real full forward. Laurie Mithen, clever and fast wing half-forward has now added superb high-marking to his ability as a ball handler. Then there is “Blue” Adam was has never been a regular, Yet stationed on a wing against the redoubtable Thorald Merrett he won “hands down”. His ball handling, his pace and red-raw courage made him one of the stars. He, too, will hold down a wing job for a long time. Newcomer Jim Sandral went on as he left off a week earlier. He broke out of the blocks like a 75 yards runner, and had strength and cleverness with it. Even the regular stars twinkled brighter then ever. Ron Barassi, as ruck-rover, plucked the ball out of the stratosphere many times, but his pace, ball handling, and determination helped him to play the game of his career. But the “star of stars” was rover Stuart spencer, who, in his last game, apparently decided to “turn it on”. His initiative, his daring his remarkable ball handling and cool escapes from trouble all stamped him as a champion. Melbourne will miss him. Ken Melville, who by nextseason will be a parson in Stepney, London was animated by the same idea. He returned to his best form, and in the centre trounced clever Bill Twomey. Then “last ditch” John Beckwith turned back Collingwood so often that Magpie supporters must have hated him. His judgment and dash were superb. And this does not exhaust the list, because every player did well. Pehaps Denis Cordner and Bob Johnson did not hold as many marks as usual, but the dominated the rucks. Against This galaxy of talent Collingwood fell down as any other team in the world would have falled down. They made many switches in position, but none paid dividends. With Peter Marquis giving one of his best displays in blanketing Ken Smale, hero of the Preliminary final, Collingwood sent Bill Twomey to full forward in the last quarter, but it made no difference. Smale went out to wing half-forward, and Bill Serong to the centre. They sent Frank Tuck to the ruck, and they had various ruckmen trying to cope with Bob Johnson in particular. But they could not handle him. Het got two goals from free kicks awarded for undue interference. Colingwood played well enough in the first quarter, to suggest the game would be close, but Melbourne “turned it on” in the second quarter and from then on the result was never in doubt. They had little “kick” left in the second half. It was obvious their great struggle to stay in the four and their three hard second round games in a row took toll of their stamina. Collingwood, in the first quarter looked a little better in the ruck were a little faster and more determined, and their only failing was an unusual one-faulty handball. Alan Nash who had umpired the first semifinal and preliminary final did well on Saturday. Final Scores: Melbourne, 17-19-121, Collingwood 6-12-48.

HOW THE COACHES SUM UP

We always got that ball-Smith

® (caption for picture of Melbourne captain, Noel McMahen) ABOVE “He's the skipper of the premiers, so why shouldn't he be proud of the way his boys played. That knowing wink seems to say "I knew they could do it," and that "V for Victory" sign confirms that they did. McMahen was carried shoulder high from the ground through hundreds of cheering supporters.

We won the premiership with long kicking and because our players showed great courage by going into the packs for the ball all day."

That's how coach Norm Smith summed up how Melbourne won their second successive premiership.

Smith said: "When I talk of courage, I don't mean that the players have to go around knocking opponents down.

"What I DO mean is that I expect our players to be prepared to go in and get that ball in any circumstance.

"Never have they been instructed to 'get' any opponent, but, rather, they have been asked to make the ball the objective all the time.

"The 'tall timber' is expected to go for the marks, and the little fellows are to hover around and pick up the crumbs.

"Much has been said about our relief followers and rovers kicking most of our goals during the season. "Well, what of it. When those chaps are off the ball they ARB forwards, and, as such, isn't it their job to kick goals?

"After all, what does it matter who kicks the goals! The ball comes toward goal because of the good work of players farther away, and the player in the best posi tion to kick goals is the player who should be given that opportunity.

"I thought the boys did a remarkable job, all 18 of them were in it all the time.

"This was a really satisfy ing premiership, and I'm proud of them.

"I must refer to the re tirement of four ? of our champions-Noel McMahen (captain), Ken Melville (vice-captain), Stuart Spen cer, and Denis Cordner.

"Everyone knows how much they have meant to Melbourne, and we are greatly' indebted to them for the grand work they have done. Now we will have to set about to find players to All those vacancies. It won't be easy."

"We want Denis" was the early chant from, the crowded bar in the M.C.C. members' stand after the game. But Cordner was a hundred yards away, talking to friends. It was his last game.

"Just too good-that's the only way I can de scribe Melbourne's tre mendous win over us," Collingwood coach Phonse Kyne said.

He said: "I thought we made a game of it up to about half time. After the break we weren't in it.

"They beat us everywhere. Whenever we looked as if we might make some sort of an advance, up would pop a Melbourne player, and again we would be fighting hard in defence.

"On the performances over the year it was generally felt that Melbourne deserved to win. Of course, we don't look at it that way, but one must face facts, especially when we look at the final scores.

"Of course we're down hearted, but we have lost premierships before, and we have bounced back again.

"So I can assure Magpie supporters that we will be in it again next year, and will still be a fighting force.

"I'd like to thank the boys for the gallant way they fought during the season. After all, we have played in four of the last grand finals, and, although only one premiership came in that period, no one can deny that the players have done a grand job over the years.

Backing-up in defence, Ron Barassi took a flying mark which literally carried all before him. In the pack which his leap brought down was Melbourne skipper Noel McMahen, who got up holding his back.

Spectators wondered whether McMahen was congratulating Barassi on the mark-or saying something else.

Rioting MCG mob alarms Games Men

By Ken Moses

That record crowd of 115,802 at Saturday’s Melbourne-Collingwood Grand Final at the M.C.g was not a sporting triumph – IT WAS A NATIONAL DISGRACE! It was an exhibition of rioting and official bungling that has caused a near panic in Olympic Games circles. Because all the forcing of barriers, swinging of punches, and complete lack of control of disgruntled sports fans CAN EASILY HAPPEN AGAIN at the Olympic Games Opening ceremony on November 22 – and any other day of the Games for that matter. One thing is certain. Even with the new stand, THE GROUND IS STILL NOT BIG ENOUGH for the League grand finals, and it definitely WILL NOT HOLD 120,000 people. One Olympic official claimed last night that Games organisers intended to cater for only 104,000 people.

But that is not what the public has been led to believe and overseas visitors told. The figure bandied around has been 120,000. IT WAS A MIRARCLE THAT NOBODY CRASHED TO DEATH BEFORE AND DURING THE ATCH. Many climbed the 8ft. wall, which is only four inches wide, behind the top of the new stand and sat there with bottles of beer and glasses throughout the game. BEHIND THE WALL IS A SHEER DROP OF 80 FEET. Police made no effort to remove them. However, police DID try to removed people from the seven flat roof of the exit entrances and kiosks at the top and back of the new stand. THEY WON THE BATTLE FOR FIVE OF THE ROOFS, AND POSTED A SOLITARY GUARD ON EACH, BUT GAVE UP ANY ATTEMPT TO CLEAR THE OTHER TWO. Again, behind these roofs was a drop of 80ft. to the earth of Yarra Park.

Stairs Blocked.

The new stand, even in the aisles, was jammed tight. Those on the stairway and others perched perilously on the girders could see only a fraction of the game. No effort was made to keep th stairways between the tiers clear. Those on the top tier could not get down to the toilets on the middle tier for most of the match for most of the match. Many who paid 7/6 to get into the stand paid another 5/ for empty Coca-Cola boxes to stand on. More than 250 people climbed from the back of the new stand on to the old outer roof, many of them children. No apparent effort was made to removed them. OUTSIDE, THE GROUND AFTER THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT ORDERED THE GATES CLOSED, IT WAS LIKE A HOLLYWOOD VERSION OF THE STORMING OF THE BASTILLE. Men in a screaming, punch-swinging mob, regardless of bodily injury to anybody, hurled themselves at the gates, with some success. Cricket Club officials estimated 2,500 forced their way into the ground by various methods, but claim another 20,000 failed. Police reinforcements called just before 1pmhad to fight for half an hour before the mob was under control. Man Cricket Club members could not force their way through the mob, and returned home to listen to the match. One mob, estimated 3,000 strong, rushed the members’ reserve gates at 1p.m.,stormed a barrier at the “visitors and officials” en trance, and at least 300 jumped or crawled under the turnstiles before the police, with linked arms, stopped the rush. Women and children were knocked over in the rush, and a uniformed attendant, Mr.J Dunk was punched in the face. About 30 men forced up the heavy steel shutter-type gate which will be raised to allow Olympic teams to enter the arena for the opening ceremony, and buckled it. Hundreds crawled underneath before police and attendants closed it again. Hundreds more climbed a spiked fence, raced across the MCC bowling green, bowling green, and scaled another fence to gain admittance. When another gate was opened to let in the Royal Melbourne Military Band a surging mob swapped punches with police and hundreds got through in the wake of the band. Others formed human pyramids while those on top smashed windows behind the new stand and squeezed their way through. The roar of the crowd during the close first quarter only urged those outside to greater efforts. They tried to break down the huge, wooden doors into the new stand even threatened to drive a car through them.

[Jumping Jack Clennett 1,626]

I'll never forget that wonderful day!

I think we won the reserrves, too!

Oh for those days again!

[Bobby McKenzie 2,194]

I'll never forget that wonderful day!

I think we won the reserrves, too!

Oh for those days again!

I remember it all too well JJ. What a wonderful experience our young posters are in for ONE day. Sooner better than later!!! Regarding the reserves, was that the one where the Melbourne player kicked the winning goal from a set shot after the siren? We had been trailing all day. Was his name Rickard or something like that?

Edited July 1, 2012 by Bobby McKenzie

[Ricky P 757]

The scenes outside the ground sound pretty wild.