KB Hill | It was the throwaway comment that helped re-ignite one of country football’s keenest rivalries………
The Ovens & Murray League had just suffered a shock 15-point loss to Goulburn Valley, in cold, wet and slippery conditions at the W.J.Findlay Oval, in early June, 2003.
GV jumped the O & M in the opening quarter, making a mockery of the conditions, and slammed on five goals, to open up a commanding 23-point lead at the first change.
They maintained that ascendency for the remainder of the game.
Gleeful Goulburn Valley diehards celebrated…….For the second time in four years they’d knocked O & M out of the Country Championships in the opening round……
Their exuberance touched the nerve of Ovens & Murray General Manager Leigh Elder:
“We’re still Number One,” he retorted.
He pointed to the O & M’s unparalleled record of four successive titles, from 1996-‘99 as proof of their standing among Country football’s pace-setters……….
“I think he’s clutching at straws,” scoffed Elder’s opposite number, GV’s Eric Bott.