The 1977 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the North Melbourne Football Club and the Collingwood Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 24 September 1977. It was the the 81st annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers for the 1977 VFL season. The game ended in a draw, leading to a replay between the two teams one week later, on 1 October 1977 again at the MCG. North Melbourne won the replay by a margin of 27 points, marking that club's second premiership win.
Collingwood entered the game after having last appeared in a Grand Final seven years earlier, when it was defeated by Carlton in the 1970 VFL Grand Final. It had last tasted premiership success nineteen years earlier, when it won the 1958 VFL Grand Final. By contrast, North Melbourne had contested the previous three premiership deciders, winning the 1975 VFL Grand Final but finishing runners-up in the 1974 and 1976 Grand Finals.
The game was just the second Grand Final in VFL history to be drawn, the other being the 1948 VFL Grand Final. Collingwood lead by 27 points at three quarter time, helped by North Melbourne's inaccuracy in front of goal which saw them kick 13 successive behinds at one point. Arnold Briedis had a match to forget, kicking 0-7 for the match. In the dying minutes of the game, two goals to Phil Baker gave North the lead but they couldn't hold on, Ross Dunne marked directly in front for Collingwood and goaled with just 40 seconds remaining to level the scores.[1]
The replay,attended by 98,366 spectators, saw North Melbourne leading throughout the match, with Briedis managing to turn things around and kick five goals. Phil Manassa scored a memorable goal, running down the wing from the half-back line, bouncing the ball four times.[2] This goal has since been commemorated by the AFL by awarding the Phil Manassa Medal to the winner of each year's Goal of the Year.
Collingwood | |||
B: | Robert Hyde | Kevin Worthington | Doug Gott / Chris Perry* |
HB: | Andrew Ireland | Billy Picken | Phil Manassa |
C: | Ricky Barham | Stan Magro | Wayne Gordon |
HF: | Wayne Richardson | Ross Dunne | Graeme Anderson |
F: | Peter Moore | Rene Kink | Ray Shaw |
Foll: | Len Thompson | Max Richardson (c) | Ronald Wearmouth |
Res: | Gerald Betts | Shane Bond | |
Coach: | Tom Hafey |
* Chris Perry replaced Doug Gott (knee) for the Grand Final Replay
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final |
---|---|---|---|---|
North Melbourne | 4.4 | 4.10 | 4.15 | 9.22 (76) |
Collingwood | 1.5 | 4.8 | 9.12 | 10.16 (76) |
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final |
---|---|---|---|---|
North Melbourne | 5.5 | 9.12 | 15.19 | 21.25 (151) |
Collingwood | 3.4 | 8.7 | 12.7 | 19.10 (124) |
North Melbourne
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Collingwood
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North Melbourne
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Collingwood
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