Round 9, 1983
Essendon vs Melbourne
Saturday 21 May
Venue: Windy Hill
Attendance: 19,955
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| Essendon | 2.2 | 11.4 | 20.9 | 22.17.149 |
| Melbourne | 5.3 | 9.4 | 12.9 | 17.13.115 |
Essendon win by 34 points
Goalkickers: Robert Flower 3, Steven Icke 3, Tony Elshaug 2, Kelvin Templeton 2, Peter Tossol 2, Adrian Battiston 1, Gerard Healy 1, Alan Johnson 1, Kelly O'Donnell 1, Michael Seddon 1
Milestones:
150 Games
Steven Icke (also with North Melbourne)
A blistering first quarter by the Demons made them look more like the side which had won three in a row in recent weeks rather than the one who had been beaten by Fitzroy in Round 8.
The match swung around in the second quarter as Paul Van Der Haar moved from centre half-back to the forward line and Ron Barassi took Peter Moore from the ground for a rest. Moore was visibly angry and Barassi later admitted he shouldn't have taken him off.
When Van Der Haar kicked a casual left footer from inside the centre square which somehow evaded both Steven Smith and Russell Richards it was clear how the rest of the day was going to go for the Demons. Smith was handy, holding Paul Salmon almost kickless but at the other end Kelvin Templeton was suffering the same sort of treatment at the hands of Paul Weston. Meanwhile Stephen Copping was kicking five of his six goals in the second term.
The hard running of Robert Flower and Steven Icke that carried Melbourne to a lead in the first quarter wasn't matched with anything near the same intensity by the other 16 players on the park and Simon Madden's dominance in the ruck put the Bombers on the road to victory.
The Demons won the last quarter 5.4 to 2.8 but the damage was already done. Icke, Connolly and Moore were the best.
Reserves
Essendon 17.12.114 d. Melbourne 17.7.109
Goals - Cordner 3, Whitford 3, Boland 2, Dixon 2, McCarthy 2, Barnes 1, Hamilton 1, Ward 1, Withers 1, Wright 1
Best - Hutchinson, Wright, Ward
Under 19s
Melbourne 32.13.205 defeated Essendon 11.6.72
Goals - Howard 7, McCarty 6, Louttit 5, Bailey 3, Nichols 3, Wight 3, Williams 1, Thomas 1, Earley 1, Payne 1, Mazurek 1
Best - Wight, Howard, Bayley
Media
Canberra Times - 22/05/1983
Football Record R10 1983
Age - 23/05/1983