On this day in 1984 the Bulldogs played their last ever game at Arden Street, North Melbourne's old home ground, and they said goodbye to the venue in style, thanks mainly to a man named Ian 'Chops' Rickman.

Rickman had arrived at Whitten Oval as a teenager a couple of years earlier, but had failed to establish himself in Footscray's senior side, playing four games in late 1982 and a solitary match in 1983.

After a disappointing loss to Geelong the previous week, first-year coach Mick Malthouse swung the axe, making four changes to the side, and Rickman was given his chance. He grabbed it with both hands.

Named on the interchange bench, Rickman came on to have a huge influence on the second half of the match. The Dogs trailed North by two points at the long break but turned it on in the third term, booting eight goals to three.

The highlight of the quarter was a dash down the wing from Rickman, who it is fair to say wasn't the slimmest player in the Bulldogs line-up, which finish in a running goal, his third, with 'Chops' raising both arms in the air, Kevin Bartlett style.

Rickman went on to add three more goals as the Dogs repeated their third-quarter effort in the last term, adding eight goals to three again to run out 63-point winners. Rickman's six goals earned him a Brownlow vote, with the three votes going to Doug Hawkins (27 possessions and a goal) and two to Ian Williams (three goals).

While the big win at Arden Street signalled big things to come over the next couple of years for Footscray, it unfortunately did not do the same for Ian Rickman. He kicked two goals the following week but played only four more games for the Dogs before moving to VFA club Williamstown the following year.

Rickman went on to make the most of his time with the Seagulls, playing 146 games over nine seasons in blue and gold, including premiership wins in 1986 and 1990. He also twice topped the VFA goalkicking list and was named in the Seagulls' Team of the Century.

One of six Club Legends in Williamstown's Hall of Fame, Ian Rickman's time at Whitten Oval remains a fond memory for many Bulldog fans — in particular his big day out at Arden Street in 1984. 

A Great Friday

33 years to the day after that big win at Arden Street, the Bulldogs and North Melbourne met again, making history in the process. The match between the sides at Marvel Stadium was the first-ever match played on Good Friday. It was a thriller.
Cloke unfortunately copped a broken rib in the match, but he still managed to kick a goal, one that would be crucial as it turned out, with the Bulldogs coming from 29 points in the third quarter to snatch a heart-stopping three-point win. 

Gilbee's Bittersweet Milestones
By a quirk of the fate, April 14 marks an important day for Lindsay Gilbee. The former Bulldog star played both his first and 100th games on the date.
Unfortunately, they were both bittersweet occasions for Gilbee. His first match was a 72-point loss to Collingwood in 2001 and his — a 50-point loss at the hands of the Saints in 2007 — was not much better.