NINE rounds into the 1982 season and Eaglehawk remained unbeaten on top of the Division 1 Bendigo Golden City Football League ladder.

There were two divisions in major league Bendigo footy 30 years ago, with Northern United leading the seven Division 2 contenders.

The June long weekend was a big one in 1982. The BGCFL's Division 2 team took on the Loddon Valley in a Saturday inter-league clash at Newbridge.

It marked the third time in as many years the two had met.
On the Sunday the three Division 1 matches were played --- Castlemaine had the bye --- along with the Provincial versus YCW Div. 2 fixture at Weeroona Oval.

And then on the holiday Monday the two remaining Division 2 games were held: White Hills v Marong and Northern United v Kennington-Strathdale.
North Bendigo had the bye.

Leading up to the busy weekend, the Advertiser reported some important team news in the Friday edition.

Key Sandhurst forward David Collins had been passed fit by the club's medical staff and selectors and was named in the side to play Golden Square in the match-of-the-round.

He was named at centre half-forward. Denis O'Connor was back in the Hurst side after a gallop with the Carlton reserves the previous weekend.

And after missing one week with a knee injury captain-coach Gary Crouch returned to the side.

In for the Square were champion wingman Peter Moroni and flanker Mark Blabey.

Durable defender Peter Rogerson had recovered from a shoulder niggle and was back in for Eaglehawk. Rogerson and forward John Scobie were the "ins" for the Hawks.
Kyneton had to replace suspended captain-coach Peter McRae and injured big man Bobby Beare, sidelined with a torn calf muscle.
Paul "Monk" Plowman and Neil Cahill, recruited from East Preston YCW, were the replacements.

Kangaroo Flat, the Tigers' opponents, were without Ken Chirgwin who had returned to Mildura with his employment, while wingman Jock Catto was named in the LVFL inter-league team.

The Roos were waiting on a clearance from South Bendigo for Peter Hunt.

AND after they'd trailed the BGCFL by 11 points at the last change, a final quarter burst of six goals sealed a great win for the Loddon Valley in the Saturday inter-league clash.
I went from chocolates to boiled lollies, after tipping in the Saturday paper that "a BGCFL winning margin of 10 goals would not be unexpected."

The Loddon Valley led by 14 points at the long break. Shane Dole, Korong Vale's Alan Jackson and Mick Murphy were the stars for the LVFL, coached by the late Russell Kent.

Bendigo's captain-coach Bill Burns was a hard worker for his team and he had no option than to move Tommy Devlin into the centre for the start of the third quarter.

Devlin had been an effective sweeper from half-back, but he was needed to spark a Bendigo revival.

He managed to get on top of LVFL skipper Ken Collins as Bendigo added 5.4 in the third quarter.

But as then Addy scribe John Forbes had predicted in the Saturday paper, Murphy and Jackson would be match-winners.

"Each week Murphy picks up more than half Calivil's goal-kicking total and with his exceptional ball sense and his ability as a goal sneak he will need to be watched closely," Forbes wrote.

Even though they'd had only two training runs together, compared with Bendigo's five, the LVFL stormed home.
Dole was too good for Greg Murrawood and then got on top of Wayne McCumber.
Murphy finished with six goals in a top performance as the LVFL left defeats in the previous two outings against the BGCFL Div. 2 side behind them.

TWO nail-biting finishes on the Sunday highlighted the Division One round of matches.

Trailing by five points at three-quarter-time Kyneton snuck home by one kick over Kangaroo Flat.

The Tigers' Pat McCarthy kicked what was to be the winning goal deep into the final term.

Roo Trevor Bennett had the chance to level the scores, and salvage two premiership points, when he lined up seconds before the final siren.

But his shot sailed wide, lurching out of bounds on the full, to leave the Roos a kick in arrears.

Rugged Robbie Griffiths landed six goals for the Flat. David Matassoni and Rose Foreman booted three majors apiece for the Tigers.

MEMORIES of the famous late 70s Square-Sandhurst clashes were re-kindled at Wade Street in the match-of-the-day.
Best known as a key defender Peter "Charger'' Davey played centre half-forward for the Bulldogs under coach Peter Crossley.

He soccered through a vital, last term six-pointer as the Square won by a single goal.

The Maroons started sluggishly, well behind on 1.2 to 7.2 at quarter-time.

They could never really make up the leeway even though Golden Square's lead was slashed to just nine points by the last change.

Later to win two Michelsens, two Brownlow Medals and a Norm Smith gong, Greg Williams was hampered by a foot injury he took into the game. But he also kicked a crucial final quarter major.
Gavin Exell was pivotal for the Hurst. He nailed six of his side's 14 goals while David Collins and Peter Rodhe landed two each.

Elusive half-forward Terry Blaufuhs (3) and tall forward Eric Pascoe (2) were Square's major goal-kickers, with big men John Williams and Alan Patterson the Dogs' best on the day.
EAGLEHAWK crushed South by 58 points at headquarters, with the Hawks' inaccuracy saving the Bloods from an even bigger hiding.

Eaglehawk had 9.14 on the board at half-time and landed just 19 goals from 41 scoring shots by the final siren.
Solidly-built South full-forward Brian McKenna nailed six of South's 11 goals. Denis Higgins (5), Steve McDougall (4) and spearhead Daryl Gilmore (3) were the Two Blues main scorers with key defender Robert "Ninga" O'Connell the outstanding player on the field.

IN THE Division 2 games, YCW full-forward Colin Grenfell snagged four-second quarter majors in four minutes on his way to a nine-goal haul against Provincial.
And that was just 24 hours after he'd played in the inter-league game at Newbridge.
Paul Kane, "Bunny" Wallace and big Glenn Mildren were other top players for the Eagles.
Even though Graeme Lyon nailed eight goals for Marong the Panthers went down to White Hills. Phil McCaw got five goals for the Hillies.
White Hills remained just outside the top four on percentage alone.
And Northern United consolidated top spot on the Div. 2 ladder with a crushing 56-point victory over Kennington.
Garry Mountjoy backed up from the inter-league fixture with five majors for the Swallows. He'd had a 48-hour rest!

ALL the scores from the mid-June round in 1982:
Loddon Valley 16.17 (113) def. BGCFL 13.16 (88); Eaglehawk 19.22 (136) def. South Bendigo 11.10 (76); Kyneton 13.17 (95) def. Kang. Flat 13.11 (89) and Golden Square 16.7 (103) def. Sandhurst 14.13 (97).

Div. 2: YCW 25.18 (168) def. Provincial 5.7 (37); White Hills 15.20 (110) def. Marong 13.14 (92) and Northern United 23.16 (154) def. Kennington-Strathdale 14.14 (98).

Accessed at Goldfields Library research and historical section, Hargreaves Street, Bendigo.
From the Advertisers of June 11th, 12th, 14th and 15th, 1982.

Richard's tips for split round 9 - June 9th: Golden Square by 39 points, Sandhurst by 18, Strathfieldsaye by 55.
June 16th: Eaglehawk by 21, South Bendigo by 8.

Progress total: 31.

By Richard Jones