Two-time Premiership Captain Mark Bickley has plenty of never-before-told stories, following a 13-year AFL career spanning across 272 games, and three years within the coaching ranks.
This year, Bicks will be lifting the lid on those stories with us, taking you inside the four walls at West Lakes, with an aim of giving an insight into football life.
Ahead of Adelaide’s Round 18 game against St Kilda, the former Skipper reveals what happened during the Crows’ first ever meeting with the Saints in 1991.
The start of our first campaign in the AFL had its ups and downs.
As we prepared to enter our seventh game - which was to be against St Kilda at Moorabbin Oval - we held a 3-3 win/loss record.
Our preparation for the clash against the Saints, however, was not great and that might’ve had a bit to do with the result.
It was common practice back then to fly over to Melbourne on the day of the game as a way to save on accommodation and to also make it seem like it was just a normal day game.
Well, didn’t that decision prove to be an incorrect one.
Our game was scheduled to kick off at 2.10pm but our plane was delayed.
Then there were traffic delays, meaning we were even later.
I can remember us players having to get our strapping done while sitting on the bus.
When we finally arrived at the ground, the reserves game, which Fitzroy was playing in, had already finished.
As we were sharing the changeroom with Fitzroy, they stayed on the ground while we ran in to get changed.
There was barely any time for Graham Cornes (our Senior Coach at the time) to give us a pre-game speech.
Speaking to Graham this week, he can remember delivering a really quick pre-game speech.
And as he looked up, he could see Robert Shaw, who at that time was Fitzroy’s Senior Coach, leaning on the wall listening in as he spoke tactics.
We can laugh about it now but having an opposition coach, even if it wasn’t the coach of the team we were playing that day, listening in on our address, wasn’t great.
Unfortunately we went down to St Kilda, 24. 18 (162) to 4.7 (31).
Saints and Swans great Tony Lockett booted 12.6, and Robert Harvey had 36 disposals.
For us, Grant Fielke and David Marshall finished the game with 25 disposals each, while then Skipper Chris McDermott recorded 23.
Despite the loss, we ended our first season in the AFL in ninth position on the ladder with 10 wins and 12 losses.
We also got St Kilda back in the best way possible six years later when we beat them in the Grand Final - and what a day that was!
Go Crows!
