To celebrate the 30-year anniversary of the famous Footscray Fightback campaign of 1989, Bulldogs fans have voted on the most significant moments for the Club over the last 30 years.
Today, westernbulldogs.com.au reveals moment 7.
The Bulldogs will take on Melbourne in Round 17 on a day dedicated to the Fightback – a time which saw an extraordinary fan uprising save the Club from a merger with Fitzroy.
On July 14, Footscray will take on Casey in the VFL, followed by the AFL game at Marvel Stadium.
VIEW THE ORIGINAL LIST OF 30 MOMENTS
7. Bevo and Bob appointed to lead new era
Mythology has it that the Chinese symbol for the word 'crisis' is made up of the symbols for the words 'danger' and 'opportunity'. While the veracity of the claim is doubtful to say the least, the notion summed up where the Bulldogs found themselves in early October 2014.
Having lost the both coach and captain after a poor season on the field, the Club was widely described by the media as in crisis. President Peter Gordon denied the claims were true (although he did reflect after the Bulldogs won the 2016 that 'crisis' may in fact have been an apt description), but it's fair to say that Club was at a dangerous juncture at that time.
What was needed at a moment of great uncertainty was leadership — at a club level and at a playing level. Gordon himself provided the club-level leadership, orchestrating a trade for departing skipper Ryan Griffen that landed number 1 draft pick Tom Boyd at the kennel.
VISIT THE BULLDOGS FIGHTBACK WEB HUB
Gordon then set about putting strong playing leadership into place, appointing a subcommittee to select the right man to take the coaching reins, and then initiating discussions with veteran player Bob Murphy. Murphy had long been seen as the spiritual leader of the Bulldogs, but through circumstance had never been club captain.
Gordon felt the situation required someone of Bob's ilk and character to see the Dogs through the team's post-'crisis' phase. Happily, Murphy agreed and declared that he was ready and keen to assume the role.
The sub-committee meanwhile had identified Luke Beveridge as the man to be the next red, white and blue coach. Though he had impressive credentials — having cut his coaching teeth at St Bedes/Mentone in the VAFA winning three flags in three years in three successively higher grades, and as an assistant coach at Collingwood and Hawthorn, during which time he contributed to a Magpies flag (2010) and two Hawthorn premierships (2013-15) — Beveridge was seen by many as a 'left-field' choice.
SAVING THE DOGS: THE PETER GORDON STORY
Murphy had previously written about the unlikelihood of the Bulldogs winning a flag in his playing days but 'Bevo' turned the concept of a 'slow build' on its head and declared that the playing group that had been placed under his guidance was capable of success sooner rather than later.
The Murphy-Beveridge captain-coach partnership proved Bevo's words were not just an idle claim. The Dogs returned to finals footy and 2015 and came within a whisker of defeating Adelaide in the Elimination Final. The following year, Beveridge and his charges invoked the ‘Why not us?’ mantra and swept all before them over four weeks of finals to record a premiership win for the ages.
Bob wasn't on the field on Grand Final day, having injured his knee earlier in the season, but his leadership role was critical to Bulldogs' success. Beveridge himself acknowledged this when he handed Bob his premiership coach medal after the Grand Final win. That moment symbolised the strength of the bond between the two, a bond that was forged less than two years earlier, but one that signalled a new era of success at Whitten Oval.
THE FIGHTBACK 30 SO FAR:
MOMENT 8
MOMENT 9
MOMENT 10
MOMENTS 11-15
MOMENTS 16-20
MOMENTS 21-25
MOMENTS 26-30
