Wombat Documentary

[Wombat64]

Was an absolute legend ..... an all time fav in an era that had so many club legends playing. It''s always the way ..... only old fellas can really know how good a player he was. Watching him play brought so many good times and memories. Wombat could run around them, through them and just for fun he was such a powerful runner that he could run straight over the top them as well. He made some good defenders look stupid. Very hard to stop. Great defensively too. I always used to love it when he'd run straight into someone bump them off and just sprint away to score a try.

Aghhhh .....the good old days.

 

[Eagle 1]

Was an absolute legend ..... an all time fav in an era that had so many club legends playing. It''s always the way ..... only old fellas can really know how good a player he was. Watching him play brought so many good times and memories. Wombat could run around them, through them and just for fun he was such a powerful runner that he could run straight over the top them as well. He made some good defenders look stupid. Very hard to stop. Great defensively too. I always used to love it when he'd run straight into someone bump them off and just sprint away to score a try.

Aghhhh .....the good old days.

Yeah, like those thoughts Wombat, I often think how he'd go in this modern game of ours. His no nonsense style of play would be a revelation. Imagine a big rampaging fullback like Eadie bearing down the middle after a clean break with only the fullback to beat...yikes!@#..

 

[Wombat64]

Yeah, like those thoughts Wombat, I often think how he'd go in this modern game of ours. His no nonsense style of play would be a revelation. Imagine a big rampaging fullback like Eadie bearing down the middle after a clean break with only the fullback to beat...yikes!@#..

Yep 100%. Almost no chance in that situation is he getting stopped. Too fast. Too strong. Too powerful. I can almost imagine that situation and I almost pity the poor bugger trying to stop him.

The game has changed players are bigger, stronger, faster but I'd like to think that Wombat with similar training could still give it a crack? Who knows .......

As a club we've been lucky with fullbacks. We've had some great ones and hopefully one day our current one can be looked on in the same light as Wombat. If anyone deserves a break it is Turbo. He really does. Hopefully future generations can look back at Turbo the same way old fellas like me look at players of Wombat's era. There should be a picture of him next to the word resilience in the dictionary.

 

[rosco]

Was an absolute legend ..... an all time fav in an era that had so many club legends playing. It''s always the way ..... only old fellas can really know how good a player he was. Watching him play brought so many good times and memories. Wombat could run around them, through them and just for fun he was such a powerful runner that he could run straight over the top them as well. He made some good defenders look stupid. Very hard to stop. Great defensively too. I always used to love it when he'd run straight into someone bump them off and just sprint away to score a try.

Aghhhh .....the good old days.

Also loved how hard he hit anyone who made a break and then got a pass away as they got to him. Made them think twice about making a break again. Lol

 

[Wombat64]

Also loved how hard he hit anyone who made a break and then got a pass away as they got to him. Made them think twice about making a break again. Lol

Absolutely, because we don't have the video we have of modern players it is easy to forget how good he was. It's a shame younger fans don't really get to appreciate him as much as he deserves.. There is so much talk in the media about how amazing the modern fullback is and even when the "experts" talk about the older era fullbacks I don't think my favourite player Wombat really gets the recognition he deserves. A ****en legend and a tough fella. Different game now, different times . ... but good memories. Go Wombat.

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

THE Goat

Full stop

 

[The Wheel]

 

[Shoe1]

Not too late to add the apostrophe

 

[Eagle 1]

THE Goat

Full stop

More than any othet club we've been blessed with world class fullbacks through the decades Mark. Eadie Ridge Snake and now Turbo.

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

More than any othet club we've been blessed with world class fullbacks through the decades Mark. Eadie Ridge Snake and now Turbo.

I’ll say !!

 

[Under the Sticks]

I’ll say !!

Rowdy Shearer also went alright in ’87 from memory

 

[The Wheel]

 

[40 nil]

I agree with all the above comments about Wombat. The key to the try was receiving the pass at full pace. I think Turbo would score that try, Koula definitely would & possibly Garrick as well.

 

[Under the Sticks]

Did the legend make an appearance in person?

 

[Jonduke]

His record speaks for itself but It’s in the details , things Eadie did on a football field that I simply can’t ever forget.

Manlys defense line is shattered , Eadie is last line of defense , the ball carrier starts to look for a unmarked support to pass the ball to . Eadie will do what he so often does, once the ballcarrier is about 10 metres away Eadie sprints at the ball carrier, he is busy having a look who to pass it to, wombats chest high tackle irons them out , irrespective of the fact that sometimes the balls been past to a support heading for a try. I never saw those tries scored , too busy waiting to see if the bloke got up or not . One preseason game I recall Beetson didn’t get up.never saw Artie iron out like that again.

rushing home from a game at Balmain to count on the tv replay the number of tackles Eadie broke in one particular run , 9 tackles busted. He must of covered 140 metres couldnt find a support , just kept steamrolling on .

at Cronulla behind the posts , bomb goes up , Eadie behind the tryline leaps , catches and runs 105+ metres to score.. he did that twice in games I saw.

At a SF against Easts and they didnt kick the ball on last tackle to Eadie , strange 1st half , not a single long kick , Jack Gibson told his kickers not to kick , just don’t kick period…he just runs it all the way back, never seen that since .

it’s a disgrace he was not honour fully by the game.

 

[Will on the hill]

Did square poops and had an ass that would literally stop traffic.

 

[Go manly]

I wonder if historians and statisticians could examine try assists, tackle busts, metres ran , post contact and all the other stuff we use to rate performance

I think wombats current stats rate him as one of the best but if these stats used today were available there would be no doubt he would be recognised as a one of a kind and easily sit along bozo as a manly immortal

 

[Terry Zarsoff]

More than any othet club we've been blessed with world class fullbacks through the decades Mark. Eadie Ridge Snake and now Turbo.

What about Ron Willey and Bob Batty? The former played for Australia from Canterbury. The latter was a fine fullback in an era when Barnes, Thornett, Langlands and (Les) Johns amongst others, i.e. Parish and McKean, were all Australian reps. Batty was right up there.

 

[manly al]

Not long stints with Manly as full backs again but ex Kiwi Daryl Williams and Dale Shearer would still rate right up there .
Also not long stints as Manly full backs but would rate Ivan Cleary and Luke Phillips quite well in addition .

 

[Eagle 1]

What about Ron Willey and Bob Batty? The former played for Australia from Canterbury. The latter was a fine fullback in an era when Barnes, Thornett, Langlands and (Les) Johns amongst others, i.e. Parish and McKean, were all Australian reps. Batty was right up there.

You're right TZ, probably should of just kept it to the modern era from the 70's onwards.