From the Archives: The 1971 Premiership and Neil Skeer's Promise
Hatherleigh's first A Grade flag came in the wet at Mt Burr in 1971 — and, as local folklore has it, in boots polished outside the post office by a man who kept his word.
From the archives · 1971
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Every club has its founding stories, and for Hatherleigh one of the best belongs to 1971, the year the Eagles won their first A Grade premiership. It had been 22 years since the club's first A Grade grand final, lost to Glencoe in 1949. When the breakthrough finally came it was against Glencoe again, and it came with a piece of local folklore that has been told ever since.
A promise made mid-season
Neil Skeer, a Hatherleigh farmer, had played for the club from 1953 until 1966 and served on countless committees. He later received life membership. Nobody questioned his loyalty, but as The South Eastern Times put it, his "judgment was astray" when he made a bold mid-season promise: if the team reached the grand final, he would polish their football boots.
The team made it, and Neil kept his word.
On the Friday before the 1971 grand final he set himself up outside the local post office and polished the boots. In those days boots were made of leather, and the busiest place in Hatherleigh was outside the post office once the inwards mail had arrived. He did the job wearing an old Eagles jumper and a blue-and-gold beanie.
Grand final day at Mt Burr
The following day Hatherleigh travelled to Mt Burr to face Glencoe in wet conditions. The Eagles won their first A Grade flag by 22 points, 11.9 (75) to 7.11 (53).
As the newspaper noted, no-one will ever know whether the shiny boots had much impact on the result. They have certainly had an impact on the club's memory of the day.
The 1971 premiership team
As listed in the original caption:
- Back (left to right): Peter Bateman, Garry Clifford, Ian Nettle, Peter Snook, Chris Skeer, Con Fitzgerald, Trevor Kelly, John Madden.
- Centre: W. (Scotty) Bell, Michael Nixon, Michael Bradley, Peter Varcoe, Barrie Smith, Bruce Keatley, Malcolm Walker, Bert Keatley, Barry Buhlmann.
- Front: Bob Sapiatzer, Terry Mole, David Snook, Greg Skeer, Wayne Johnson (coach), Barry Walker, A. (Tony) Thompson, Bob Edmonds.
- Absent: Peter Scudds and Laurie Smith.
The caption doesn't say which people in the photo match which names, or who the men in white coats at each end are, so the club hasn't matched names to faces.
Among the premiership players was Garry Clifford, centre half back in the grand final and the 1967 Mail Medallist.
Historical context
For 31 years, 1971 stood alone. When Hatherleigh reached the 2002 A Grade grand final, the Eagles still had a "monkey on their backs" as the club with the fewest A Grade flags in the MSEFL: their sole premiership had come in 1971. Garry Clifford was expected to be in the crowd with a number of his old teammates to spur on the new generation.
Before that grand final, former coach Peter Zeitz had written that "it is about time such a self-disciplined and focussed side as the 1971 premiership team re-emerges at Hatherleigh." The 2002 side went on to win the club's second A Grade premiership.
There was a family link too. In the week of the 2002 grand finals, Neil Skeer's grandson, Joe Rayson, was playing for the Hatherleigh junior colts.
Read more: Four Grand Finals at Kalangadoo: Hatherleigh's 2002 finals week · See the 1971 photos
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