Terry Wheeler set off for a well-earned break at the end of the 1989 VFL season.
He jumped in the car with his son Tim, with two weeks of relaxation in central New South Wales his sole focus.
It was early October, and he had just spent his first year as Footscray’s reserves coach.
THE FIGHTBACK 30 – COUNTING DOWN THE MOST SIGNIFICANT BULLDOGS MOMENTS
As they continued their journey north, Wheeler noticed the front-page headlines in the steel encasing as they cruised by the newsagents in the major country towns.
Slightly concerned, but largely unfazed, they drove on.
A couple of days into their holiday, Terry and Tim returned from a fishing trip on the Lachlan River.
Unexpectedly, there had been a phone call for Terry. It was Peter Gordon.
“I’d never met Peter Gordon in my life. He basically said ‘we’ve got a little bit of trouble down here, and we’d like you to coach next year,” Wheeler said.
“(I said) how long are you going to give me to think about this, Pete? He said ‘I’ll give you 30 seconds’.”
VISIT THE BULLDOGS’ FIGHTBACK HUB
Without hesitation, Wheeler accepted the role as senior coach of Footscray, even though there was a strong possibility the Club wouldn’t survive the next few days.
He immediately jumped in the car and drove through the night so he could make it to the famous Fightback rally at the Western Oval on October 8.
There, in front of more than 10,000 people, Gordon and Wheeler met in the flesh for the first time, before the new coach was unveiled to the crowd, which erupted with a deafening roar. 
A few weeks later, Footscray won its battle to remain in the VFL, in one of the most extraordinary displays of fan upheaval the competition is likely to ever see.
Wheeler went on to coach the Bulldogs for five seasons, until the end of 1994, and led the Club to a preliminary final in 1992.
Taking that phone call 30 years ago was one of the many small gestures which combined to ultimately save the Footscray Football Club.
