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1989

Coach: John Northey
Captain: Greg Healy
Finishing Position: 4th
Best and Fairest: Alan Johnson
Leading Goalkicker: Darren Bennett 34
Best First Year Player: Luke Beveridge
Major Sponsors: Drake
Members: 8184
Financial result: +$157,601

Matches Ladder Playing List Best and Fairest Reserves Under 19s

Image Coming off the simultaneous triumph and tragedy of making the 1988 Grand Final, only to be thrashed by a record margin, the Demons adopted a new logo and set their sights on going one better in 1989.

They started the year well, winning their second pre-season competition in three years. As they progressed through the Panasonic Cup, practice matches against Geelong in Colac and Carlton at Princes Park were cancelled.

For the third year in a row, Melbourne scraped into the finals, battling an injury crisis that had up to 18 players out late in the year. They made it despite only winning one of their last six games. Such was the even nature of the ladder that they may still have snuck a double chance without a loss to St Kilda in the second last round. It left them as one of the few teams to qualify for the finals with a percentage of less than a hundred.

The city's wettest winter in nearly 40 years seriously affected games in the middle of the season, contributing to Melbourne scoring 20 points against Geelong Round 12. No games were played on the MCG in Round 18 and Round 19 to help the surface recover before finals.

They recovered form in the first week of the finals before Geelong proved a sterner test in the Semi Final, ending their season.

End of season exhibition matches were played in Toronto and London.

At the conclusion of the year, the league altered the metropolitan zones of Victorian clubs. The shires of Whittlesea (centred around Epping) and Bulla (Sunbury) were removed from Melbourne. In their place came the City of Springvale, South and West Wards of Dandenong South, the East Ward of Oakland, and the South Ward of Waverley, which were formerly St Kilda territory.

Practice Matches

OppositionResultScore
St Kilda LOSS90-144

Panasonic Cup

RoundOppositionResultScore
1 Sydney WIN64-47
QF Fitzroy WIN73-70
SF West Coast WIN55-54
F Geelong WIN76-67

Premiership Season

RoundOppositionResultScore
1 Fitzroy WIN116-111
2 Essendon LOSS68-94
3 Richmond WIN122-61
4 Brisbane Bears WIN79-53
5 Footscray WIN82-71
6 Collingwood LOSS64-124
7 Carlton WIN86-80
8 West Coast WIN95-93
9 Sydney WIN52-43
10 North Melbourne WIN113-83
11 Hawthorn WIN69-54
12 Geelong LOSS20-89
13 St. Kilda WIN64-56
14 Brisbane Bears WIN113-99
15 North Melbourne WIN117-81
16 Geelong WIN112-109
17 Carlton LOSS79-106
18 Fitzroy LOSS103-151
19 Hawthorn LOSS63-87
20 Sydney WIN98-87
21 St. Kilda LOSS72-104
22 Essendon LOSS89-108
EF Collingwood WIN111-88
SF Geelong LOSS90-153

Exhibition Matches

OppositionResultScore
Geelong WIN90-103
Essendon WIN46-82

Playing List

NumberPlayerGamesGoals
1 Steve O'Dwyer 17 6
3 Garry Lyon 1520
4 Tony Campbell 1411
5 Earl Spalding 1919
6 Glenn Lovett 50
7 Brian Wilson 1826
8 Graeme Yeats 168
9 Alan Johnson 204
10 Danny Hughes 194
11 Jim Stynes 2417
12 Todd Viney 96
13 Tom Kavanagh 21
14 Rod Grinter 194
16 Andy Lovell 10
17 Brett Lovett 241
18 Steven Stretch 2211
19 Darren Bennett 1334
21 Steven Febey 203
22 Chris Connolly 104
23 Warren Dean 65
24 Bret Bailey 93
25 Simon Eishold 167
27 Sean Wight 1915
28 Jamie Duursma 200
29 Dean Chiron 20
30 Dannie Seow 52
33 Greg Healy 2124
34 Stephen Newport 2015
37 David Flintoff 1210
41 Peter Rohde 144
45 Ricky Jackson 1815
47 John Ahern 20
48 Luke Beveridge 127
51 John Howat 54
52 Stephen Tingay 125

Best and Fairest

PlayerVotes
1st Alan Johnson 278
2nd Steven Stretch 207
3rd Garry Lyon 206
4th Stephen Newport 204
5th Steven Febey 200
6th Steve ODwyer 162
7th Jim Stynes 158
8th Greg Healy 153
8th Brett Lovett 153
10th Earl Spalding 109
11th Brian Wilson 88
12th Rod Grinter 63
13th David Flintoff 49
14th Sean Wight 48
15th Todd Viney 43
16th Luke Beveridge 24
17th Chris Connolly 23
18th Glenn Lovett 19
19th Jamie Duursma 16
20th Dannie Seow 12
21st Bret Bailey 7

Awards
Most Consistent - Alan Johnson
Redlegs Trophy - Alan Johnson
Most Improved - Steven Febey
Best Team Player - Stephen Newport

Tribunal

RoundPlayerChargeSanction
Round 2 Rod Grinter Striking 5 matches
Round 3 Jamie Duursma Striking Not Guilty
Round 13 Jim Stynes StrikingNot Guilty
Round 15 Steve O'Dwyer Abusive Language Not Guilty
Round 15 Reserves Peter Rennie Striking Unknown
Round 17 Reserves Anthony Graham Abusive language Unknown
Round 18 Luke Beveridge Striking Not Guilty
Round 18 Brian Wilson Striking Not Guilty
SF Tony Campbell Striking Not Guilty
Exhibition Match vs Essendon Luke Beveridge Unduly Rough Play Not Guilty

Reserves

1989 Reserves season
Best and Fairest - Luke Beveridge

WDL%P
Carlton 1604129.864
Geelong 1505154.460
Essendon1505125.060
Footscray1307136.452
Fitzroy1307123.852
North Melbourne1208119.148
Collingwood1109115.844
Hawthorn911092.738
Sydney901192.236
Richmond701366.328
Melbourne401668.516
Brisbane301775.712
St Kilda111861.16

Under 19s

1989 Under 19s Season
Best and Fairest - Darren Cuthbertson

WDL%P
North Melbourne 1903179.376
Essendon 1804144.572
Richmond1507123.060
Geelong1309120.152
Carlton 12010112.748
Melbourne 1001295.840
St Kilda901385.136
Sydney811385.234
Fitzroy801479.232
Footscray701582.928
Hawthorn501764.320

Media
Canberra Times - 16/03/1989
Inside Football - 02/08/1989
Teamworks - Spring 1989