With the Swans playing St Kilda in New Zealand this week, Classic Matches recalls the extraordinary circumstances surrounding a clash between the clubs 90 years ago.

South Melbourne v St Kilda,
Round 18, September 15, 1923
Lake Oval

The battle to reach the final four was so intense in 1923 that The Argus newspaper of September 13 that year predicted enormous crowds at the final round South Melbourne-St Kilda, Melbourne-Collingwood and Geelong-Carlton games.

Essendon and Fitzroy already had secured their finals places, but South, St Kilda, Collingwood and Geelong were eyeing the other two finals spots.

The South-St Kilda clash was the most important as the winner would secure one of the two finals positions and The Argus suggested there would be a record attendance at the Lake Oval.

However, no one expected the massive crush at the old South Melbourne ground that afternoon and although the official attendance was 40,441, many believed the real attendance was more like 48,000.

Every vantage place was taken, and then some. Fans sat or stood on the grandstand roof, while thousands stood on the playing side of the fence.

The Argus the following Monday reported that the official attendance figure broke the VFL record for any home and away match, bettering the 40,000 attendance for a Richmond-Essendon King’s Birthday match at the Punt Road Oval the previous season.

The newspaper added: “One effect of the tremendous crush was that before the game was long in progress a section of about 40 yards of the picket fence fell forward and other sections of the fence were down at three different points.”

Despite what The Argus described as an “immense” crush, there was only one injury – a crushed finger following one of the fence collapses.

Although fans expected a fight to the finish between the neighbouring seaside clubs, the match proved to be a major disappointment because of South’s clear superiority.

The Southerners, captained by brilliant centreman Paddy Scanlan, scored the first goal of the match, from a long punt by full-forward Ted Johnson and always seemed in control despite St Kilda sticking to their heels.

South led by seven points at the first change and by five at half-time. Although the margin was just seven points at the final change, only South’s poor kicking for goal kept St Kilda in the match.

The Southerners killed off St Kilda’s chances with early goals by Johnson and Bill Condon in the final quarter. The Argus suggested that South was “driving the nails”.

The newspaper reported that dour football was played over the final 10 minutes, but this “suited South Melbourne’s interest well enough”.

In naming South’s best players, The Argus suggested that Roy Cazaly was “pretty well at his best again” and that Arthur “Poddy” Hiskins was the best of the Southerners’ defenders.

South’s 20-point win earned it third position on the ladder, with Geelong snatching fourth position in defeating Carlton by 65 points at the old Corio Oval.

Under the final four format of that era, South played top side Essendon at the MCG in the second semi-final, but went down by 27 points, therefore ending the Southerners’ premiership ambitions. Essendon went on to defeat Fitzroy by 17 points in the Grand Final.

South Melbourne   3.2     4.7     6.12     8.20 (68)
St Kilda                 2.1    4.2     6.5       7.6 (48)

B:    Joe Scanlan, Arthur Hiskins, Tammy Hynes
HB:  Frank Laird, Arthur Hando, Frank Ross
C:    Artie Wood, Paddy Scanlan (capt.), Jack O’Connell
HF:  Harold Robertson, Martin Brown, Bert Sutton
F:    Bill Condon, Ted Johnson, Charlie Nicholls
FOLL.:  Roy Cazaly, E. Herbert Matthews, Mark Tandy
There were no reserves in that era.

** Harold Roberston kicked just one goal in this match but, in another match against St Kilda, at the Junction Oval in round 12, 1919, he kicked a then club record 14 goals. This record was broken by Bob Pratt, with 15 against Essendon at the Lake Oval in round three, 1934 and then by Tony Lockett, with 16 against Fitzroy at the Western Oval in round 19, 1995.