Memories of windy Hill

Memories of windy hill. I’m sure all Blitzes of a certain age have them. Just a few of mine:

The cricket club " bar’ under the showers pavilion. Trestle tables and Kegs

Pleasant Sunday mornings in the same venue. My old man took me to one in the early sixties and I remember Don McKenzie playing the theme song on a piano accordion

The ’ pigs pen’ just outside the Allan T Hird Stand

The ’ Premiers lounge’ with those glorious balck vinyl couches.

And of course the social club after a Bombers win.

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Never got a game, too young. But a standout memory was a mosquito fleet clinic in the mid 90s. Was down before the scoreboard came down and alot of the terracing and most of the bill behind the goals was still there.

Wanganeen signed my club 10 hat!

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Standing on the bluestone wall next to the tennis courts in a crowd of 43K plus against Collingwood in 1967.

Taking 90 minutes to drive back along Mount Road after towelling up Carlton in 1982. Stood up on the terrace at the School End.

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Going with Nonna to watch some bizarre cricket match we played against some of the Aussie players due to being sponsored by “3” IIRC. The joint was choccas.

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Knocking off a few balls when someone would kick a goal over the fence and onto the road at training.

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Getting autographs of the senior players sitting in the players area of The Reynolds Stand as they watched the reserves playing during my primary school years.

“Growing up” and moving to the outer end behind the goals with my school mates (and some cute girls)

Walking back across the ground after a game and noticing the smell of the stagnant watery mud

Buying unopened cans by the dozen so you didn’t have to make extra trips to the bar

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Was that the one where Lloydy took a spectacular catch flying horizontal in the air?

I was 15 years old in 1993 and went to the grand final. After the grand final everyone was told don’t go back to windy hill because the players won’t be going there and the ground would be locked. I went there anyway and the ground was locked up so there was a bit of a party going on in the streets. I remember when I got there someone was burning a carlton scarf and everyone dancing and singing. The party went on into the night and it was getting pretty late and then a bus rocked up out the front so ran over and was standing at the door and remember Wanganeen coming out and got to pat all the boys on the back as they made there way into the social club. Everything got pretty stupid after that as people started to get pretty wild and started pulling down one of the gates and running on the oval and some peanut lit a fire in the middle of the ground. Ended up getting shouted a few beers and stayed there all night and went to the family day on the Sunday. I will never forget that night. Also when I was a real young fella standing on the beer cans in the outer so I could see the game. Great memories.

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E’er Peanuts, passing money down the front and the white paper bag of peanuts coming back. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jP5pHRW8UMw

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Mum and Dad used to set up home made individual trestles at the bottom of the Showers pavillion steps nearsest the goals. They were there for at least 20 years- no one ever treid to take their spot, That was just the way things rolled in the 60s/70s/80s.
When I was younger, I’d move down to the forward pocket near the point post and watch the game from there, with the smell of Pies, pasties, beer and coffee ever-presnent. At quarter time and 3/4 time, you’d rush out to the huddle and listen to the likes of Tuddy, Bill Stephen, Barry Davis and even a very early Kevin Sheedy. The players seemed more human, as you could mingle amongst them as they wore their dressing gowns sucking on an orange and gulping down Staminade. The smell of Penatrine and linament hanging in the air. And to hear the coaches deliver their oratory- usually ending in a bit of fire and brimstone- wow.

As I grew older, a group of us used to perch behind the “oposition” goals and cheer squad. Happy days! We;d give em heaps, but it was generally all in good spirit. With the exception of Collingwood and North supporters…I have memories of Leigh Matthews breaking a goalpost, and Jacko teeing off on Ron Andrews- he dead set sounded lie a parrot with his teeth out. Also Paul Van Der Haar drilling a goal from what seemed like the outer wing. Cna’t forget the call of “Peanuts!”, and later in the game, the cheer squad coming around with a blanket you’d throw coins into.
Good days- and absolutely ingrained in my upbringing. It helped make me who I am, and it’s why I love the club, and have encouraged the family to as well.
If you never had the chance, at least go down there sometime. find a spot in the outer. close your eyes and imagine. It was probably just like you thought it should be.

Oh, and if you can take a footy with you- have a kick on the sacred turf. Just like after the game in the old days.

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My great aunt Amy used to rock up at 8am with her mates so they could snaffle a seat against the fence and watch the U19s, Reserves and Firsts.

Does anyone remember the fire in the hot dog stand behind the scoreboard at half time one day? The willow caught alight as well. I remember the hot dog vendor kid looking on forlornly while his workplace went up in smoke and some ■■■■■■ guys chanted ‘Bradford’.

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As a kid, I remember just how packed it was in the terraces when the crowd was 30k or higher.
The old man is a Carlton fan, so we always went to that fixture.
I could barely see a thing but I didn’t care, it was just so exciting being there and taking in the passion from the true fans.

Whilst I fondly remember the ground and some of the games I attended, the thing that stuck with me the most is the anticipation of waking up on a Saturday morning, watching a bit of Hey Hey, then the drive in my dad’s cream coloured Ford Falcon 500 (rust bucket Holden before the Ford) with Yacht Rock playing on the radio (probably 3MP).

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Jumping the fence and running out onto the ground to get autographs. Then trying to find my way back to where mum and dad were. Was prob only 6 or 7 year old back then.

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I would have been ~13 the last year we played there.

Dad used to take me a lot as a good mate of his lives in Napier St so they’d let us park in their driveway and walk to the ground.

I’ll never forget the following:

  1. peanuts peanuts!!

  2. Being on the wing one day playing against Fitzroy. There was a boundary throw in right in front of us and some guy yells out “Ironmunger, put a bloody mask on you’re scaring the kids”. The timing was impeccable.

  3. Being behind the goals against the Swans. I was there with my Dad, 2 uncles and a cousin. Both uncles were Cats supporters but there to see the Warwick Capper show. He was in the goal square right in front of us and the crowd was giving it to him all day. You could see half is ■■■■ cheeks his shorts were that tiny.
    One of my wog uncles was giving it to him heaps and threw out the now highly inappropriate “finoccio” line at him amongst other things. Capper was close to jumping the fence and fighting him.

  4. Seeing Longy & Kickett playing their first games there. Was so much hype about them both and the stories of Longy in the saunas are half time. The view from the fence at the wing was strange as the ground wasn’t flat, so I recall Kickett bursting on a wing and couldn’t see his legs as he was running.

  5. Standing on empty beer cans to get a better view as a kid. Those cans didn’t crush like they do today.

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I had a few years as a youngster in the ■■■■ Reynolds stand but spent most years standing on the outer wing. Like everyone, we got to know the people around us. As a mid teen I got speaking with an older lady who was also a regular fixture. She told me how excited she was as her grandson had been playing under 19’s and was doing well. She said to keep an eye out for a kid named Mark Harvey from Keilor.

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The day the hot dog stand nearly blew up at the bottom of the Showers stand, near where the pool is today. We all jumped the fence while play was still going thinking there was about to be an explosion.

Also the day Steven Clark had a shot from outside 50 after the siren. Goal square filled with supporters to stop it going through

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The only times they played 3 games was during the finals.

I think they played the u/19 game before the ones until the late fifties, then it became magoos then ones. Threes played at twoish on the opposition’s ground.

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Around the time of Life of Brian, there was a big blue on the outer wing. Naturally Merrett was involved and some wag yelled out “welease Woger”. Most amusing!

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Memories, great and otherwise:

Standing ovation for Ian Marsh when he ran off the bench in the twos after open heart surgery.

Simon Madden’s mark.

Simon’s yips for a period in front of goal.

Fouldsy kicking a goal from the middle with a torp.

Vander vs Knights.

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I used to go in the 60s. Definitly 3 games played then.