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HERALD COUNTRY SHIELD RUNNER-UP
1997 Senior Boys Football
This team went Runner-Up in the Herald Sun Country Shield, cruelled by injury to their star player.
They lost after getting jumped early by Swan Hill at VFL Park, Waverley.
Coached by Wangaratta Rovers legend Joe Wilson, who played in our 1987 Herald Sun Country Shield winning team and was later drafted to Brisbane.
Most say this team would have won the Shield if not for their star Full Forward Scott Thompson injuring his ACL in an earlier game against Galen at City Oval.
“Thommo” was playing Murray Bushrangers at the time, with several AFL clubs showing interest in drafting him. Teammates describe him as being able to do anything – jumping on heads, bombing goals from outside 50. He had kicked 4 in a quarter agsint Kyabram in an earlier school game that year. Post-Reconstruction, he was still good enough to kick 7.7 in a Senior O&M Grand Final as a 20 year old.
The team had a number of other top talents, including 2 other Murray Bushrangers – Year 11s Nathan Parker and Andy Murray, son of St Kilda Premiership player & Team Of The Century Full Back Bob.
The 196cm Parker played 4 AFL Reserves games the following year as a Year 12 (3 for Melbourne, 1 for Carlton). He would play in the Murray Bushrangers U18 Premiership team.
Murray had won the 1996 McCormick Medal (League B&F) in the Junior League the year before as a bottom-ager, and played 1996 U15 O&M Schoolboys as well, and his 1998 performances for the Rovers Thirds Premiership team are still talked about by teammates as the most dominant they have seen by a teenager, with similar attributes to Thompson – grabs over packs, long goals etc.
On top of this, there was Year 11 Stuart Cooper. “Coops” by all accounts could have walked into the Bushrangers had he wanted to, instead of playing at King Valley in the Ovens & King. North Melbourne full back Mick Martyn turned up to the 1998 State Semi Final the following year to watch Cooper, with the Kangaroos looking at drafting him. Cooper sadly hadn’t been allowed to play, and had to wait 3 more years for the Kangaroos to recruit him (Rookie List in 2001). He later won an O&K Baker Medal (League B&F) as a 23 year old
The potential forward line is frightening – Thompson, Parker, Murray, Cooper. All Bushrangers level forwards, all with interest from AFL clubs in that year or the following year.
Throw in Scott Semple (1996 Rovers Thirds Premiership forward the year prior as a Year 10) and the near-on 200cm David Cavicchiolo (Greta), and it’s likely the most stacked forward line we’ve ever had. I wonder if during the campaign, they all lined up in the same game.
There was plenty of other talent in the smaller brigade too. Daniel McLaughlin had won the 1996 O&M Leo Dean Medal (League B&F) in the Thirds the year before for the Rovers, and was playing Seniors at the time. “Dacca” played plenty of Senior O&M Football, and later coached Greta. He is cited as kicking 4 goals in the Kyabram game of 1997.
McLaughlin, Semple and Rohan Woodward had all played in the 1996 Rovers Thirds Premiership the year prior as Year 11s.
Troy Walker would the following year get 24 votes in the Leo Dean Medal for the Rovers.
Todd Fisher had won the Ken Farrell Medal (U15 League B&F) in the Junior eager 2 years prior. Semple (1994 at Year 8) and Murray (1995 at Year 9) had won the League Goalkicking in the Junior League 2 and years prior.
Interestingly, for Swan Hill it was revenge for 1994, when our Intermediate team beat them in the State Final by 33 points. Many of the Year 12s in the Swan Hill team, would have likely been the same Year 9s from that year. From our team – Cox, Fisher, Fulton, Woodward.
