1978 The year it was

[Adelaide Hawk]

Also the point re him being played out of position was well illustrated in the game in 71 or 72 at the AO (I think Jezza kicked 10 that day and SA lost by 4 points).

1973

[mal]

1978 also produced some newly borns
Tom Harley
Heath Culpitt
Peter Burgoyne
Jarred Crouch

[mal]

MAY 28+29
ROUND 9

NA 14-10 WA 8-20
WV 14-13 WT 7-20
ST 17-21 SA 11-10
GL 12-13 NW 10-14
PA 13-20 CD 8-13

ST continue on thier rollicking way with 8 wins in 9 rounds
NA had back to back wins, and remained in finals contention
GL get a very important break over NW on the ladder

MAY 29
Gary Hardeman has surgery in his injured knee, expected to miss several weeks

MAY 31
Graham Reed is cleared from CD to ST

Neville Rocky Roberts was severley reprimanded for attempting to strike in the game against Woodville

SANFL LADDER
ST 8-1
GL 8-1
NW 6-3
PA 5-4
WV 4-5
WA 3-6
NA 3-6
SA 3-6
CD 3-6
WT 2-7

There were no official Sports Bookies those days
Had there been a market framed the odds I would have bet at this stage :

ST $1-60
GL $3-50
NW $5-50
PA $7-00
WV $41-00
WA $61-00
NA $81-00
SA $81-00
CD $201-00
WT $301-00


QUESTION
The big 4 of the 70s were the top 4 teams on the ladder at this junction ST/GL/NW/PA
They seem to have dominated this era of time
Was there a reason ?
I think there was...

[robranisgod]

I take exception to your comment the big 4 of the 70s. North Adelaide won 2 flags, were champions of Australia and were runners up another time in the 1970s. Perhaps if you referred to them as the so called big 4 of the late 1970s you might be a bit closer.

There was one single reason why they dominated from about 1975 until 1982 and that was purely and simply finances.

[mal]

1978 was a period when ST/GL/NW/PA were the dominant forces
Theres some corralation between wealth and power

I will use NW /NA as an example

The early 70s was a great period for NA with 2 flags and a 2nd to GL
Football was very much a pure comp
NA were great NW was not

By 1978 as NW became a wealthier club they had won 2 flags 75/78
NA more or less languished
The comp became unbalanced to a degree,some sides seemingly with the most $$$ , were advantaged over sides with less wealth

The SANFL on face value was starting to shift in favour of wealthier clubs
I would say the big 4 of 1978 had enough or an abundance of monies
This has flowed into the Salary Cap times we have thesedays

You only have to see the recruiting of NW + NA for 1978 to get an idea
It appeared that NW had money to burn, NA didnt have that luxury
That reflected on both teams finishing positions in 1978


An exception to the money = success
NA became a force in part of the next decade
Not sure if they became wealthier, I would rather think it was Mick Nunan bringing up a brilliant batch of juniors that became a very good team

Apart from that richer clubs have enjoyed the most sucess for most of the time

This present decade is another example
NA/NW have struggled when poorer, but improved drastically when it seemed that both clubs became wealthier
PA has finished in low spots of late becoz they are almost broke

SUMMARY
big 4 in 1978
big 5 includes NA for much of the period of time Ive followed footy in that millenium [1966-1999]

[nickname]

1978 was Fos Williams' last year as a coach, as West went from 3rd in '77 to 9th. I can remember being told that he was unable to distinguish between the players when the play was on the far side of the ground and would ask those around him on the bench who the players were.

[Adelaide Hawk]

There was one single reason why they dominated from about 1975 until 1982 and that was purely and simply finances.

Which must frustrate a North supporter in view of the fact they were unable to convert their recent financial advantages to premiership success. Financial advantage does not guarantee premiership glory.

In fairness to Mal, the term "Big 4" was one versed in many corners of the media over the greater part of the 1970s. I didn't like the title myself, in fact it's total BS, but that's what the media wanted to call it.

It may have even been Peter Marker who coined the phrase in the first place, writing an article in a weekly football newspaper.

On a lighter side, at least the SANFL "Big 4" at the time were winning premierships, unlike the AFL's current "Big 4", three of which are a basket case

[mal]

JUNE 3 + 5
ROUND 10

PA 9-13 SA 4-11
ST 17-13 WV 6-7
GL 13-11 WA 9-9
WT 12-13 NW 7-12
CD 20-9 NA 12-13

Now would you look at that scoreline PA V SA
Looks very familiar to the 1979 SANFL Grand Final score
PA 9-9 SA 3-14
WT knock off NW for the 2nd time in the season, both times keeping NW to low scores of 11-9 + 7-12
ST + GL continue playing very well, with 9-1 win loss ratios, it prob looked like ST beating GL in the G/F at that stage
Max George had a day out kicking 10 goals in the CD win over NA

JUNE 8
Noel Pettingill retires form SANFL footy

PETTINGILL
Pettingill one of the longest kicks ever to grace the SANFL had played 157 games for NW + ST
Another ST player calling it a day this season
Pettingill played 133 games for NW between 1969-1976 + 24 games for ST 1977-1978
Pettingill started off at Norwood around the Bob Oatey coaching time
I wonder how he would have gone in American Footy as the kicker ?

[GWW]

MAY 13-14
ROUND 7

ST 28-21 PA 14-8
WA 16-9 SA 8-12
NW 15-16 NA 8-18
GL 23-20 WV 16-13
WT 20-13 CD 11-8

ST absolutely smashed PA by a mammoth 98 points in the 1st v 4th game at Unley
Mr Magic Paul Bagshaw kicked 10 goals further emphasing what a gifted and versatile footbaler he was after etching his name as a star midfielder ruck rover type most of his career
One of the coolest uncomplicated skillful footballers ever to grace a SANFL football ground I wonder if he would have been a star in the VFL comp at the time ?
The loss to WA the week b4 might have been a catalyst to ST pulverising PA
One wonders how 17,097 people all fitted in into the Unley Oval that day

I've looked back through this thread to find this Port v Sturt score as I remember being at my grandparents' place as a kid, watching a replay of a Sturt v Port game when the Blues won convincingly. I wasn't exactly sure what year it was but presumed it was a year in the late 70's when Sturt made the grand final but Port didn't.

Sure enough, this is the game, wasn't a good feeling as a little kid (I was only 6 in '78) watching my beloved Port side getting belted when i was used to my side winning regularly (fortunately I have no real memory of 76 grand final).

One of my strongest memories was the commentators raving about Bagshaw, and fair enough now that i see he kicked 10

[mal]

DAVID KANTILLA

David Kantilla 1938-1978
Died in a car accident on Bathurst Island aged 40
Mr Amparralamtua stated his career at St Marys in the NT , b4 being recruited by SA in 1961
His debut game was against GL at Kensington Oval and Kantilla kicked 6 goals, mainly big marks at full forward
his Glenelg opponent that day alledgedly said after "" Everytime he went for a mark it was like the sun had set""
It is believed that Kantilla was the first Aboriginal player to play in the SANFL
Kantilla played 113 games from 1961-1967

Kantillas nickname was Soapy
How he got the nickname :
After state training there was a photo taken of Kantilla covered in soap in a steam bath
The photo was in the paper the next day


I can remember him playing for SA
Was a skinny lanky guy
He played in the last SA flag in 1964
I have heard what a star he was



How good was David Soapy Kantilla ?
Is he perhaps in the top 10 best indigenous players to play in the SANFL ?

[Magpiespower]

ST 28-21 PA 14-8

I've looked back through this thread to find this Port v Sturt score as I remember being at my grandparents' place as a kid, watching a replay of a Sturt v Port game when the Blues won convincingly. I wasn't exactly sure what year it was but presumed it was a year in the late 70's when Sturt made the grand final but Port didn't.

Very similar scoreline in '83 when Sturt smashed Port by 114 points at Unley.

Port's record losing margin at the time...

[Adelaide Hawk]

JUNE 8
Noel Pettingill retires form SANFL footy

I wonder how he would have gone in American Footy as the kicker ?

No good. He would kick the ball too long to be of value. I could just image "hang time" if Pettingill booted the ball up in the air, players would be able to take a drinks break waiting for the ball to come down

[Adelaide Hawk]

How good was David Soapy Kantilla ?
Is he perhaps in the top 10 best indigenous players to play in the SANFL ?

Kantilla was sensational, and if he played today would be a superstar. Very much in the Adam Goodes mode, and for those who remember, Stephen Michael. When people tell you Kantilla was a star, believe it.

[GWW]

What position did Kantilla mostly play whilst at South? Was it somewhere across half back, or was he perhaps a ruckman?

[smithy]

WT 12-13 NW 7-12
WT knock off NW for the 2nd time in the season, both times keeping NW to low scores of 11-9 + 7-12

For some reason I can remember Torrens always giving Norwood grief between mid 70's - mid 80's no matter where they were on ladder.

[Psyber]

What position did Kantilla mostly play whilst at South? Was it somewhere across half back, or was he perhaps a ruckman?

From memory of seeinghim play against Norwood when I was a kid, he was primarily a ruckman and fairly skinny for his height.
He was quick by those day's standards, and had a good leap.
He may have played other positions later in his career.

[baggy8]

MAY 13-14
ROUND 7

ST 28-21 PA 14-8
WA 16-9 SA 8-12
NW 15-16 NA 8-18
GL 23-20 WV 16-13
WT 20-13 CD 11-8

ST absolutely smashed PA by a mammoth 98 points in the 1st v 4th game at Unley
Mr Magic Paul Bagshaw kicked 10 goals further emphasing what a gifted and versatile footbaler he was after etching his name as a star midfielder ruck rover type most of his career
One of the coolest uncomplicated skillful footballers ever to grace a SANFL football ground I wonder if he would have been a star in the VFL comp at the time ?
The loss to WA the week b4 might have been a catalyst to ST pulverising PA
One wonders how 17,097 people all fitted in into the Unley Oval that day
Baggy kicked 8 in the second qtr of this game (9 for the half), and with the game won at 1/2 time, deliberately gave his potential goals off to others, saying something to the effect of "otherwise I might've kicked 15 goals or so, and I didn't want that."
Fitting 17000 into Unley was a doddle (but then I've always been skinny) compared to fitting 22000 in there for the same game ten years earlier (I was even smaller then).
Baggy might not have been a success in a lower-ranked VFL side of his era because those sides were not as good as the leading SANFL sides and any football genius needs a certain number of teammates with sufficient brains to 'read' him.

I've looked back through this thread to find this Port v Sturt score as I remember being at my grandparents' place as a kid, watching a replay of a Sturt v Port game when the Blues won convincingly. I wasn't exactly sure what year it was but presumed it was a year in the late 70's when Sturt made the grand final but Port didn't.

Sure enough, this is the game, wasn't a good feeling as a little kid (I was only 6 in '78) watching my beloved Port side getting belted when i was used to my side winning regularly (fortunately I have no real memory of 76 grand final).

One of my strongest memories was the commentators raving about Bagshaw, and fair enough now that i see he kicked 10

[baggy8]

MAY 13-14

ST absolutely smashed PA by a mammoth 98 points in the 1st v 4th game at Unley
One wonders how 17,097 people all fitted in into the Unley Oval that day

Baggy kicked 8 in the second qtr of this game (9 for the half), and with the game won at 1/2 time, deliberately gave his potential goals off to others, saying something to the effect of "otherwise I might've kicked 15 goals or so, and I didn't want that."
Fitting 17000 into Unley was a doddle (but then I've always been skinny) compared to fitting 22000 in there for the same game ten years earlier (I was even smaller then).
Baggy might not have been a success in a lower-ranked VFL side of his era because those sides were not as good as the leading SANFL sides and any football genius needs a certain number of teammates with sufficient brains to 'read' him.

[baggy8]

[quote="mal"]DAVID KANTILLA

David Kantilla 1938-1978
Died in a car accident on Bathurst Island aged 40

To use an awful turn of phrase, David Kantilla was dead unlucky as there were only two cars on Bathurst Island at the time; he was just walking along and got hit by one of them.[list=][/list]

[GWW]

Something I'm curious about is player movement that occurred at the end of 1978.

Neither Norwood or Sturt made the grand final (perhaps they were eliminated late in the finals? I'm a little young to remember, and haven't done any research on it), yet Port and South did. Port lost Ebert, yet made the grand final and ultimately won the flag.

So for those that can remember - did the Redlegs and Blues lose a few players at the end of 1978 or was it just a case of injuries, and perhaps a bit of a "let down" after the 78 grand final?