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bornadog
22-08-2018, 08:50 AM
Over the years we have had some beauties against Richmond. Bob Murphy recalls the day Libba elbowed Knights in the forehead.


What’s the old saying? Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer? It’s something like that.

The Bulldogs and the Tigers have what I would describe as an almost forgotten rivalry. In Round 2, 2001, Richmond hosted the Western Bulldogs at the MCG in front of a healthy crowd.

The game is remembered because of an altercation between Tony Liberatore and Matthew Knights in the centre square. A wild melee ensued, and Matthew Knights left the ground with blood pouring out of his face. I was playing my fifth league game.

A lot of things collided in my little world that day. I’d grown up barracking for the Tigers, but trying to emulate Leon Cameron’s style of play.

My opponent on this day? Leon Cameron.

My instruction from Terry Wallace was to play on the half forward flank and nullify the graceful Leon at half back.
I was all at sea against one of my heroes and my old team. I think Leon may have even featured in the Brownlow voting for this game.

Despite growing up as an avid Tigers supporter, I dropped them like a hot potato when I was drafted by the Bulldogs in 1999. It was easier than you might think.

Having said that though, it was quite a jump to witness the moment the Tigers went from our opponent to our arch nemesis.

Which is exactly what happened after Libba and Knighter’s ‘little run in’. It was a two-way street. The Tigers hated us.

Over the next few years those games were played with a heightened intensity. They weren’t finals, but the atmosphere felt like a final each time.

Added to the mix was an unusual level of cross pollination in the form of trades and moves. A quick run through of players to cross clubs are Ben Harrison, Nathan Brown, Leon Cameron, Patrick Bowden and later, Jordan McMahon.

In isolation, this might not mean that much, I mean, players are traded from club to club every year, but the on-field rivalry was magnified by off-field friendships that ran deep.

The Dogs and the Tigers of that era often drank together and socialised. It was a friendship that contained shards of competitiveness and spite. Like the ripples of mould in a wedge of blue vein cheese.

The Dogs and the Tigers of this modern era are not a classic rivalry as such, but these things can spark up just when you least expect it.

The Bulldogs will be hoping to upset the ladder-leaders to exit the season on a high of four wins in a row, but we’ll have to be at our best as the Tigers have shown their will and class all year.

There’s a sense of melancholy this week for the Bulldogs, as there always is at this time of year, this being our last game of the season.

The Tigers are about to launch an assault on their flag defence, and we are not. Still, when there’s four points up for grabs and you’re representing the clan, the blood runs hot.

In a rare show of peace and goodwill this week, the Tigers and the Dogs traded soldiers, but only for the purposes of podcasting gold.

Matthew ‘Richo’ Richardson made his way out to the kennel for a sit-down chat on our club’s podcast ‘Freedom in a Cage’, and we took a walk down memory lane.

There was no spite to be seen or heard, there was no blue veins. For Richo and I, the war is over.
It only seemed right that I should also cross to Punt Road for the Tigers podcast and partake in some football nostalgia.

This is the indulgence for old footballers, laughing and smiling at the stories and the drama. For the boys of today, the veins of passion rage and everyone wants to win.

Do you have some memories of playing Richmond that were out of the ordinary?

Mofra
22-08-2018, 09:16 AM
Do you have some memories of playing Richmond that were out of the ordinary?
Only my favourite round 1 of all time :cool:

Ozza
22-08-2018, 09:44 AM
The game Bob is referring to actually happened in 2001, not 2004 as he says in the article. And Leon Cameron didn't get brownlow votes that day, the votes were 3. B.Johnson, 2. R.Smith 1. S.Cox

bulldogsthru&thru
22-08-2018, 09:47 AM
Only my favourite round 1 of all time :cool:

I was at that game.....oh when we used to score with ease

Mofra
22-08-2018, 10:09 AM
I was at that game.....oh when we used to score with ease
Ryan "brain surgeon" Griffen's comments after the game landed him in hot water too.

God I was praying we'd get to the 20 goal victory mark towards the end of that match. I remember bumping into someone in the CBD afterwards and when I said we won by 20 goals they wouldn't believe me.

Twodogs
22-08-2018, 10:12 AM
The game Bob is referring to actually happened in 2001, not 2004 as he says in the article. And Leon Cameron didn't get brownlow votes that day, the votes were 3. B.Johnson, 2. R.Smith 1. S.Cox



Yeah, I thought Libba retired in 2002.

bornadog
22-08-2018, 10:58 AM
The game Bob is referring to actually happened in 2001, not 2004 as he says in the article. And Leon Cameron didn't get brownlow votes that day, the votes were 3. B.Johnson, 2. R.Smith 1. S.Cox

yes you are right

https://cdn.newsapi.com.au/image/v1/11d1dfc6557aa384484d4e1d05c0490c?width=650

Rocket Science
22-08-2018, 12:34 PM
That era was the wellspring of a bitter distaste for that mob I harbour enthusiastically to this day.

Daffy, Chaffey, Knighta, that joyless prick Campbo, I could go on. It became a game within the game to wind those turds up.

How I pine for the days when if you wanted the four points you had to go through the Wog Squad to get them.

Twodogs
22-08-2018, 12:53 PM
That era was the wellspring of a bitter distaste for that mob I harbour enthusiastically to this day.

Daffy, Chaffey, Knighta, that joyless prick Campbo, I could go on. It became a game within the game to wind those turds up.

How I pine for the days when if you wanted the four points you had to go through the Wog Squad to get them.



Great days. Having grown up in the late 60s and early 70s I already hated Richmomd when I arrived at the 'G that day but the hatred grew a fair bit that day.


Bloody Knights is a bleeder though. It was oozing out of every oriface in his body!

The Pie Man
22-08-2018, 01:53 PM
IIRC Daniel Bandy had a blinder that Saturday afternoon.....still a bit sad he couldn't get his body right.

EDIT : the game I'm thinking of was 2002.

Go_Dogs
22-08-2018, 07:17 PM
Only my favourite round 1 of all time :cool:

I was living in Adelaide at the time and vividly remember getting into my car that night and hearing the score. What a cracking result that was...the start of something.

bornadog
22-08-2018, 08:51 PM
The game Bob is referring to actually happened in 2001, not 2004 as he says in the article. And Leon Cameron didn't get brownlow votes that day, the votes were 3. B.Johnson, 2. R.Smith 1. S.Cox

Amended on the club website

Topdog
23-08-2018, 11:47 AM
The draw is my fav memory

bornadog
23-08-2018, 12:36 PM
The draw is my fav memory

Nathan Brown's celebration :D

Twodogs
23-08-2018, 12:38 PM
The draw is my fav memory

Poor old Brian Lake had to limp off the ground and couldn't take the money shot. You could tell he was cut up about it! Wil Minson had to take it.

Mofra
23-08-2018, 01:09 PM
Poor old Brian Lake had to limp off the ground and couldn't take the money shot. You could tell he was cut up about it! Wil Minson had to take it.
The miraculous recovery Lake made during the week truly was incredible...

Twodogs
23-08-2018, 01:15 PM
The miraculous recovery Lake made during the week truly was incredible...


That would be our great medical department back then.

Eastdog
26-08-2018, 06:43 PM
Would have been great to have knocked them off yesterday.

A classic. When we beat them by 2 points a few years ago at Etihad.

Eastdog
26-08-2018, 06:47 PM
The 115 point win we had against them one of our best.