Last game at Subiaco Oval
West Coast played 322 times at Subiaco Oval. From their entry to the AFL in 1987 until 2017 it was home. They won two in every three games at Subiaco, or more precisely 68.25%, and enjoyed countless memories and highlights.
It all ended in round 23 2017. On Sunday, August 27, three years ago next week, the Eagles hosted the Adelaide Crows in one last outing on a site that was built in 1908 and known at the time as Mueller Park.
There were several face-lifts. In 1969 a three-tier stand was built at the western end and in 1981 a two-tier stand was added on the members’ wing. In 1995 a two-tier stand opposite the members wing was added and in 1997 the ground got light towers.
In 1999 one last redevelopment converted Subiaco to an all-seat venue with a capacity of 43,500.
Home to WAFL club Subiaco from the 1930s, it was not just home to Australian Football in Perth. It also hosted the Perth Glory soccer team, including two National Soccer League grand finals, and the Western Force rugby side.
There was a world-class array of concert attractions. From Elton John in 1971 and the Bee Gees in 1972 through to Guns N’ Roses and Adele in 2017. In between the likes of Led Zeppelin, Slade, Santana, Genesis, Australian Made, Billy Joel, Paul McCartney, the Eagles, Rod Stewart and Bryan Adams, Neil Diamond, Pearl Jam, Robbie Williams, Bon Jovi, Andre Rieu, AC/DC, U2, Summadayze, One Directio and Fleetwood Mac.
The three-tier stand was named the Orr-Simons-Hill stand in honour of three leading figures in the history of the WAFL, formerly the WANFL.
The first tier was the R.W.Hill Tier in honour of the 1940-41 West Perth captain and WAFL secretary in 1968. The second tier was the W.R.Orr Tier in honour of the 1932 WANFL secretary. And the third tier was named in honour of Jack Simons, WANFL secretary from 1905-14.
In 2003 retail telecommunications company Crazy John’s tried to buy the naming rights only to be denied by the local Subiaco council.
In 2005 the WA Football Commission proposed a non-commercial name change to 'ANZAC Field' but this was rejected by the Minister for Veterans Affairs, De-Anne Kelly, because Anzac was a federally protected word.
Finally, it October 2010, as commercialisation took on a more prominent place in football, Perth-based stockbroker Patersons Securities bought the naming rights. It was Patersons Stadium until February 2015 when the Domain Group, real estate giants, took over the naming rights for the last three years of the stadium’s existence.
Since demolished and now part of the schoolgrounds of Bob Hawke College, Subiaco hosted a total of 545 AFL games. On top of West Coast’s 326 games, Fremantle played 265. Carlton visited most among opposition clubs, making the trek across the nullabor 43 times.
Matthew Pavlich (195) played most games at Subiaco, followed by Dean Cox (159), David Mundy (149), Aaron Sandilands (145), Darren Glass (142), Andrew Embley (136), Luke McPharlin (135), Matt Priddis (129), Michael Johnson (127) and Shannon Hurn (120).
Pavlich (400) also kicked most goals at Subiaco from Josh Kennedy (285), Mark LeCras (229), Phil Matera (205), Peter Sumich (179), Quinten Lynch (155), Jack Darling (154), Jeff Farmer (147), Hayden Ballantyne (147) and Andrew Embley (131).
Kennedy’s 11 goals against GWS in 2014 was the most at the ground, while Kennedy twice kicked 10 to replicate the 10-goal bag of Scott Cummings. Paul Medhurst kicked nine.
Steve Malaxos’ all-time West Coast record of 48 possessions against St Kilda in 1987 is the Subiaco ground record. Matt Crouch (45), Sydney’s Josh Kennedy (45), Tom Rockliff (45) and Matthew Boyd (45) were next best from David Mundy (44), Jordan Lewis (44), Peter Bell (44), Matt Priddis (43), Michael Barlow (43), Chris Masten (43), Matt Rosa (43), Leigh Montagna (43) and Gary Ablett Jnr (43).
The highest score at Subiaco was West Coast’s 30.8 (188) in a 111-point win against GWS in 2014 and the lowest score was Melbourne 2.8 (20) as they lost by 79 points to West Coast in 1991.
West Coast’s 135-point win over Adelaide in 1995 and Geelong’s 135-point win over West Coast were the equal biggest wins at Subiaco.
Subiaco hosted 20 AFL finals – 13 for West Coast and seven for Fremantle – and celebrated nine finals wins with delighted West Coast fans.
Remember them? That’s coming up as the Flashback Series moves into finals mode.
But as much as finals wins will always be extra special, the very last home-and-away game at Subiaco was as good as any. For high stakes and high drama it was extraordinary.
The Eagles snuck into the 2017 finals by a meagre 0.48% after an epic round 23 win that demands equal headline billing in the combined Round 23-24 flashback series.
They sat ninth on the ladder after round 22 with 44 points and a percentage of 104.3 Ahead of them were seventh-placed Melbourne (48 points, 106.4%) and eighth-placed Essendon (44/106.1), and below them were 10th-placed St Kilda (44/104.3) and 11th-placed Western Bulldogs (44/97.4).
As round 23 unfolded on the Saturday, the Dogs were eliminated when they lost to 12th-placed Hawthorn and Melbourne found themselves under the pump when they lost to 13th-placed Collingwood.
In the first game on the Sunday to close out the home-and-away season Essendon beat 14th-placed Fremantle before fourth-placed Richmond beat St Kilda.
With just the West Coast game against Adelaide to play the Eagles were a game behind Essendon and Melbourne and there was nothing between them in percentage. Essendon had finished at 106.5 and Melbourne at 105.2. West Coast were at 104.3 with a game to play.
They knew exactly the situation but that didn’t make it any less nerve-wracking. Perhaps more so.
After Eddie Betts kicked the opening goal for Adelaide Nathan Vardy, Jack Redden and Jamie Cripps (two) replied for West Coast. They led 4-1 to 1-1 at quarter time. In the big picture they still trailed Essendon but were 0.07% ahead of Melbourne. And they only needed to better one of them.
Adelaide kicked three of the first four goals of the second term, broken only by Cripps’ third, before time-on goals from Andrew Gaff, Mark Hutchings and Luke Shuey.
Had the ever-popular ‘live ladder’ of modern times been in operation it would have shown West Coast “in” the eight by 0.28%. But a late goal from Josh Jenkins for Adelaide meant they were ‘out’ by 0.06%. It was that close.
A goal each to start the third quarter and West Coast were ‘out’ by 0.08% but a behind from Kennedy cut the percentage deficit to 0.03%.
Throughout the commentary it wasn’t so much about the score in the Eagles-Crows game but what it meant to the top eight. A little insert box in the bottom left corner of the TV screen showed the live percentages of West Coast and Melbourne.
After four scoreless minutes LeCras goaled for the Eagles. Kennedy and Drew Petrie followed, and when LeCras kicked his second at the 23-minute mark of the third term the Eagles were 1.23% ahead of Melbourne on the live ladder.
Better but not safe. Especially after a late Betts goal left the buffer just 0.65% at three quarter time.
In the first 21 minutes of the final term West Coast kicked 0.5 to Adelaide’s 3.1. The Eagles were ahead by 17 points in the game but after Betts dished off to Charlie Cameron for a short run to an open goal Anthony Hudson screamed in commentary “the Demons are back in the eight”.
Indeed they were. By a meagre 0.16%.
The timeclock showed 21min42sec when Jake Lever looked to clear from deep in the Adelaide defence. He went short down the middle to Brad Crouch but the ever-alert Lewis Jetta intervened. The ball hit the ground. Jetta gathered, made a brilliant blind turn around nobody, stepped Sam Jacobs and ran away from Lever to goal from 20m.
One goal equated to 0.32%. It was West Coast by 23 points over Adelaide and by 0.16% over Melbourne. But there was still seven and a half minutes to play.
Two and a half minutes on, with the Eagles applying enormous pressure, Rory Laird kicked out on the full for the Crows. Josh Kennedy from 60m went long. Really long. It couldn’t be a goal could it?
No, it wasn’t. But it was just as good. Jack Darling launched himself with the flight of the ball and clutched it to his chest as he crashed into the padding on the right goal post. A brilliant mark. “It’s a reverse Leo Barry,” said an excited Hudson.
Darling took his shot from right in front. A goal. The very last at Subiaco. Another 0.33% swing as the Eagles hung on to eighth spot by 0.48%.
Luke Shuey’s 28 possessions and a goal earned him the last three Brownlow Medal votes at Subiaco, while Adelaide’s Matt Crouch took two votes for his 45 possessions and a goal and West Coast’s Sam Mitchell, in his 327th game, picked up one vote for 34 possessions.
Mitchell would finish his career two finals and a fortnight later. Eric Mackenzie and Drew Petrie likewise, while Luke Partington, in his fifth game in round 23, would play his last game in the elimination final the following week.
But football at Subiaco was done. A round 23 moment that will never be forgotten and an extraordinary farewell to the long-time home of the game in Perth.
The last West Coast side to play at Subiaco, in notional positions, was:-
B: Liam Duggan, Shannon Hurn, Tom Barrass
HB: Brad Sheppard, Jeremy McGovern, Elliot Yeo
C: Andrew Gaff, Luke Shuey, Lewis Jetta
HF: Dom Sheed, Jack Darling, Jack Redden
F: Mark LeCras, Josh Kennedy, Jamie Cripps
R: Nathan Vardy, Sam Mitchell, Matt Priddis.
Int: Drew Petrie, Mark Hutchings, Eric Mackenzie, Luke Partington.
And the first West Coast side to play at Subiaco, beating Richmond by 14 points in round one 1987, in notional positions, was:-
B: Murray Wrensted, Michael Brennan, Andrew MacNish
HB: Dean Laidley, Mark Zanotti, Geoff Miles
C: Adrian Barich,, Dwayne Lamb, Phil Narkle
HF: Chris Lewis, Ross Glendinning, Don Holmes
F: Wally Matera, Darren Bennett, Laurie Keene
R: Alex Ishchenko, Steve Malaxos, John Annear.
INT: Peter Davidson, Paul Peos.
Fittingly, Laurie Keene, a 1986 WAFL premiership player with Subiaco, kicked the first goal at Subiaco. Loping inside 50m the 202cm ruckman left fly from 48m on his left and grabbed a slice of football history when it just cleared the goal line.
Phil Narkle, with 20 possessions and two goals for the Eagles, received the first three-vote Brownlow Medal rating at Subiaco, while Michael Brennan, with 17 possessions in defence, received two votes. Richmond’s Michael Thomson took one vote.
Murray Wrensted led the West Coast possession count in the first game at Subiaco with 29, while Richmond’s Maurice Rioli was the leading possession-winner in the game with 37. The West Coast’s Wally Matera was the game’s leading goal-kicker with four.
