Countdown with us from ten to the greatest grand final of all. Do you agree with our order? Let us know in the poll below.
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Score: 10.15 (75) to 9.12 (66)
Crowd: 91,817
Norm Smith Medalist: Nathan Buckley, Collingwood
What made it great: A low scoring first quarter saw only one goal scored for the term by Collingwood’s Anthony Rocca. In the second quarter Brisbane looked like pulling away with a late goal surge. Collingwood mounted a brave challenge in the third quarter to stay well in the match. In an enthralling last term the two sides went goal for goal. A controversial goal umpiring decision went against Collingwood's Anthony Rocca and shortly after Brisbane's Jason Akermanis slotted a snap shot for a goal late in the term to drag the margin out by more than a kick. This was enough for the Lions to hold on for back-to-back premierships.
Score: 14.21 (105) to 12.9 (81)
Crowd: 92,685
Norm Smith Medalist: Billy Duckworth, Essendon
What made it great: Hawthorn dominated the game early winning the first quarter by 21 points. Although Hawthorn had extended this lead slightly by half-time to 25 points, Essendon were still in touch. Having dominated all day Hawthorn were still ahead by 23 points by the three-quarter-time changeover in what was a low scoring quarter. Essendon got off to the perfect start in the final quarter when Madden, who had been ordinary for much of the game, won the opening bounce. The Bombers kicked nine goals six points in the final term to break free from the Hawks. It would not be until 2009 that another team would win the Grand Final from a three-quarter-time deficit. Essendon's win ended a 17-year streak during which only Hawthorn, Richmond, Carlton and North Melbourne had won the premiership.
Score: 8.10 (58) to 7.12(54)
Crowd: 91,898
Norm Smith Medalist: Chris Judd, West Coast
What made it great: Although West Coast started aggressively, by the first changeover Sydney were in front by two points. The second quarter saw Sydney assert some control over the game, kicking three goals while the Eagles were kept goalless. This was reversed in the third quarter with the Eagles booting three goals and the Swans none. In the final minutes of the game with Sydney just four points up, Leo Barry took a mark in the midst of a pack full of Eagles players denying West Coast the opportunity to kick a winning score on or after the siren. The Swans won their first premiership in 72 years, ending the longest premiership drought in VFL/AFL history. This was the first time since the 1989 that the grand final was decided by a goal or less.
Score: 9.14 (68) to 10.8 (68) (Draw the third in VFL/AFL history)
Crowd: 100,016
Norm Smith Medalist: Lenny Hayes, St Kilda
What made it great: Collingwood scored the first goal only 20 seconds into the game after winning the first clearance but things were pretty even, statistically speaking, by quarter-time. Collingwood easily dominated the second quarter and went to the long break with a 24-point lead. In the third quarter the Saints started to win clearances again, and after both teams mustered rushed behinds, Riewoldt scored the first goal. By three quarter time only eight points separated the teams. The fourth quarter was close. At the 20-minute mark St Kilda took the lead for the first time after Goddard scored a goal from 20-metres out, directly in front, after taking a big specky over O'Brien. The lead would change back to Collinwood again before a St Kilda point at the 30-minute mark would tie the scores. This was the third draw in a VFL/AFL Grand Final, the previous two occurring in 1948 and 1977. The two teams met again the following week for the decider. This time Collingwood left no doubt about who was the premiership winner defeating St Kilda by 56 points.
Score: 12.8 (80) to 9.14 (68)
Crowd: 99,251
Norm Smith Medalist: Paul Chapman, Geelong
What made it great: On this cold, wet grand final day Geelong came out strong, earning a two-goal advantage after just eight minutes. Over the next four quarters the lead changed several times in what was a very close contest all day with 12 points the greatest margin at any stage of the game (Geelong's lead late in the second quarter, and the final margin). It was a high tackling game due to conditions, with St Kilda recording 118 tackles - the highest on record for any team in any game. Although St Kilda were ahead at each changeover, in the second half Geelong made better use of their inside-50s and clearances and broke through St Kilda’s rebound defense more effectively leading to their ultimate triumph.
Score: 12.13 (85) to 12.12 (84)
Crowd: 97,431
Norm Smith Medalist: Andrew Embley, West Coast
What made it great: West Coast started on top and were 25 points up by half-time. In the third quarter the Swans fought back and bought the margin back to 11 points by three-quarter-time. The Swans came out firing for the final quarter with Adam Goodes kicking a goal within the first 15 seconds. The final quarter was one of the most intense final terms of a grand final ever with the teams going goal for goal. Eventually West Coast hung on by a single point to win its first premiership since 1994. It was the fifth match in a row between the two sides to be decided by less than a goal and the first grand final to be decided by a point since 1966 St Kilda and Collingwood.
Score: 10.14 (74) to 10.13 (73)
Crowd: 101,655
Norm Smith Medalist: none as it didn’t start until 1979
What made it great: In a game that was largely a battle of the backlines there was hardly a kick separating the two sides, but the momentum seemed to be with the Saints for most of the game. Victory was hard fought and in the most dramatic of ways. With just two minutes and time on remaining, Collingwood’s Des Tuddenham kicked a behind to level the scores. The scene was set for a frenetic last five minutes of football with players flinging themselves at the ball without regard for personal safety. Two minutes into time on Barry Breen of St Kilda grabbed the ball after a ball-up and sent a snap shot through for a minor score to secure a one point lead. That was all they needed as they hung on to take the premiership by a point.
Score: 9.22 (76) to 10.16 (76) (Draw - only second in VFL/AFL history)
Crowd: 108,224
Norm Smith Medalist: none as it didn’t start until 1979
What made it great: The game seemed all but over when Collingwood held a convincing lead of 27 points at three-quarter-time. The lead was assisted by North Melbourne's inaccuracy in front of goal which saw them kick 13 behinds in a row from the 24-minute mark of the first quarter. But the Kangaroos came back in the final period to kick five unanswered goals. North Melbourne’s Phil Baker kicked two goals late in the last quarter to gain the lead for his side. Still victory was denied North as Ross Dunne marked directly in front for Collingwood and goaled. With just 40 seconds on the clock the scores were level. North Melbourne would comfortably win the replay grand final the following week.
Score: 17.9 (111) to 14.17 (101)
Crowd: 121,696 (highest ever)
Norm Smith Medalist: None as it didn’t start until 1979.
What made it great: This was arguably one of the greatest grand finals of all time and, according to one of the key protagonists, Ted Hopkins, heralded "the birth of modern football". Collingwood started with flare and by half-time had jumped to what appeared to be an insurmountable lead of 29 points. During the half-time break, champion Carlton coach Ron Barassi instructed his players to handball and play on at all costs, in an attempt to disrupt Collingwood's long kicking game. This proved highly effective and Carlton scored seven goals to one behind in the first thirteen minutes of the third quarter. Collingwood fought back towards the end of the quarter but this was not enough to prevent a 10 point Carlton win. Collingwood’s inability to cement the final victory led to them being dubbed with the derisive nickname "Colliwobbles" for the first time.
Score: 21.18 (144) to 21.12 (138)
Crowd: 94,796
Norm Smith Medalist: Gary Ablett, Sr. Geelong
What made it great: This was a real bruiser of a match right from the start when Mark Yeates ran through Hawthorn's champion centre half-forward, Dermott Brereton, leaving him with broken ribs and a bruised kidney, which caused him internal bleeding. It was later revealed this was a strategy to protect star Geelong midfielder Paul Couch and keep Brereton quiet. Geelong played a punishing, physical game and by the end of the match, Hawthorn had only 13 fit players on the field. Despite nine goals from Geelong champion Gary Ablett and a spirited final quarter fightback by the Cats, Hawthorn held on to win by six points to take back-to-back flags.
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