SWDFL GRAND FINAL REPORTS - by Jack Luhrs 
POWERHOUSE FIRST HALF SEALS TITLE 

Few South West clubs have made winning a premiership look so easy as Ganmain did last Sunday in the first half of the Grand Final at Narrandera on the Narrandera Sportsground. The Maroons were leading 14-7 (91) to 3-8 (26) and there was no reason why they would have built up their winning margin to something like 100 points or better.
Their mammoth 65-point lead at half time was achieved with copperplate play and with winners in almost every position on the ground. Ganmain killed the game for interest, and it looked like a dull yawn to the finish line.
Their Darwin brigade of crack rover Joey Daby, centre half forward Greg Peris, flankers Joel McLennan, Cliff Hampton and Eddie Motlop headed a ruthless charge on the might of Narrandera.
The Imperials were left with few credits, lost morale and an apparent humbling few grand final teams in the South West football had ever received. But the Ganmain champion play did not rest on these players alone.
Lyle, John and Trevor McPherson, Wayne, Greg and David Carroll, full forward Russell Campbell, full back James Gumbleton, captain Greg Leech, in all, the entire Ganmain football machine was intent on retaining its record of the club winning the most premierships in the history of the league.
They turned Narrandera into fumbling puppets destined to be remembered as the side facing the most miserable defeat of any finalist in the past two decades. Incredibly, all this was to change.
Ganmain won the premiership, but for most of the new record crowd (gate $8,130.00) the game only started after the half time break.

Ganmain won 20-8 (128) to 14-17 (101) and although their margin of 27 points in the finish looked good, Narrandera fought back in the second half to salvage the prestige of their great club.  It was the South West grand final at its best after the half time interval.
For the first time in the match, the Narrandera big man might headed by Laurie Gibson and magnificently supported by Adrian Collier, Jeff Hemphill, Victor Hugo and Murray Nielsen, began to take effect. 

The Imperials were on a long haul back and the deficit started to crumble. Sixty-five points down at halfway shrunk to 39 at three quarter time and was further whittled down to a mere 17 points midway through the final session.
Narrandera smelt possible victory and the Maroons feared the horrors of a defeat that should never have been theirs.
The best of both sides flung into full action, and it was in those tight tense moments, the full worth of Ganmain club showed through.
No better was it shown than in dynamic rover Joey Daby.  With Narrandera within 17 points of the lead and with enough minutes in the game to reduce this even further, Daby let fly with one of his characteristic runs that turned the ball from the teeth of the Narrandera goal. He booted the ball to match winning centre half forward Greg Peris, and from Peris to Russell Campbell and the latter's ninth goal for the game, broke the Narrandera impending headlock.
For Russell Campbell, the match was a personal triumph. As the league's leading full forward with 103 goals kicked in competition play, Campbell booted ten in the grand final to stamp him as one of the most exciting forwards in recent years.

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SWANS SECONDS IN CLEAR WIN

Despite losing top defender Steve Best in the first few minutes of the grand final, Griffith reserve grade clearly won the premiership at Narrandera with a convincing 15/12 (102) victory over Leeton, 10/14 (74).
Worthy challengers Leeton strongly disputed the Swans claim to being the top side in the competition yet were never quite able to wrest the laurels away from the victorious Griffith.
The Swans were started on the way to victory by winning the toss and had full forward Victor Wilson on target early to kick two of their three majors for this period.
The Redlegs looked good when they turned with the breeze in the second stanza with their two veterans Max Kruse Snr. and Allan Gray leading the Leeton fight back.
Larry Harrison's three goals helped the Redlegs to outscore the Swans, but a fighting reply restored the balance in favour of the Swans to lead by a satisfactory 13 points at the halfway mark.
Griffith played there be football in the final two stanzas to consolidate their impending premiership win.
Two more goals to Victor Wilson including a fine effort after receiving a heavy knock (from Allan Gray) while marking, steered Griffith further ahead but the Leeton recovery was beginning to flower.
Out marking Griffith and with veterans Max Kruse Snr. and Allan Gray taking control, the Redlegs fought back to be within eight points of the leaders.
Griffith were saved from impending disaster by the sterling defence of young ruckman Neil Thompson, half back flanker Norm Alexander and the class of Frank Valeri at centre half forward.
A great opportunist goal from Ian Manning increased the Swans margin to 14 points, but not before Leeton had squandered a great opportunity to move closer when they added a lopsided 2-5 for the period. 
Griffith clinched victory with a burst of five goals to round off the final session.
It was in this period their superiority became clearly established and their full team effort stood out.
Their final victory of 28-points had to survive many periods when Leeton threatened to break through, but each occasion was met by an answering burst from the Swans to justify their convincing premiership win.
Leading the competition throughout the season as match favourites and their fine form on the day was further rewarded with the season's ultimate success.

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SWANS THIRDS MISSED CHANCES

Failing to take full advantage when kicking with the wind, cost Griffith under 19's a premiership when they were defeated on Sunday by Narrandera 5/11 (41) to 5/4 (34). The story of the game is told in the scorecard.
Winning the toss, the Swans struggled for the first twenty minutes of play before they recorded their first major.
They booted another before the end of the session but had not done near enough with the breeze to lead by only 10 points.
Narrandera were equally at fault with the change of ends and their 1-6 for the period was overshadowed when Griffith kicked three goals against the wind, to hold a match winning lead of 17-points at half time.
The Swans plundered their own chances with a disastrous third quarter.

A miserable one point with the breeze had whittled their majority to five points by three quarter time when Narrandera added 3-1 despite the hurdle of a strong wind to harass their forward moves. 
Narrandera took the lead for the first time in the match when a towering mark to Mark Russell and his resultant goal at the three-minute mark of the final quarter, booted the Imperials to a slender one-point lead.

For Griffith, the chance had passed them by. Of the 34 points for the game, only 13 were scored with the wind on a day when at least three goals should have been taken with the wind assistance.
Griffith played their best football in the second quarter and had the right to be confident about the final outcome despite a shaky first period. Failing to goal after half time did nothing to boost their winning chances and Narrandera were well deserved premiers in a game where the Swans failed to ram home their advantages.
Griffith had fine games from defenders Chris O'Dwyer, Maurice Wood and Malcolm Clark, ruckman Joe Box and winger Joe Ammendolia. The game was lost after halfway and the Swans can now only reflect on what might have been.
(The Area News - Tuesday September 28, 1976).