| 1983 VFL Grand Final | ||||||||||||||||
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| Date | 24 September 1983 | |||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Melbourne Cricket Ground,Melbourne,Australia | |||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 110,332 | |||||||||||||||
| Umpires | Nash & Smith | |||||||||||||||
| Ceremonies | ||||||||||||||||
| National anthem | Glenn Shorrock | |||||||||||||||
| Accolades | ||||||||||||||||
| Norm Smith Medallist | Colin Robertson (Hawthorn) | |||||||||||||||
| Jock McHale Medallist | Allan Jeans | |||||||||||||||
| Broadcast in Australia | ||||||||||||||||
| Network | Seven Network | |||||||||||||||
| Commentators | Lou Richards (commentator) Peter Landy (commentator) Bob Skilton (expert commentator) Stephen Phillips (boundary reporter) | |||||||||||||||
The1983 VFL Grand Final was anAustralian rules football game contested between theHawthorn Football Club andEssendon Football Club, held at theMelbourne Cricket Ground inMelbourne on 24 September 1983. It was the 87th annualGrand Final of theVictorian Football League, staged to determine thepremiers for the1983 VFL season. The match, attended by 110,332 spectators, was won by Hawthorn by a margin of 83 points, marking that club's fifth premiership victory. This VFL Grand Final was the first of seven consecutive VFL Grand Final appearances for Hawthorn, continuing all the way to1989.
It was Essendon's first Grand Final appearance since losing the1968 VFL Grand Final, while it was Hawthorn's first appearance since winning the1978 VFL Grand Final. The Bombers had not won a flag since winning the1965 VFL Grand Final.
At the conclusion of thehome and away season, Hawthorn had finished second on the VFL ladder (one game behindNorth Melbourne) with 15 wins and 7 losses. Essendon had finished fourth, also with 15 wins and 7 losses, but with an inferior percentage.
In the finals series leading up to the Grand Final, the Bombers defeatedCarlton by 33 points in the Elimination Final before defeatingFitzroy in the First Semi-Final by 23 points. They advanced to the Grand Final after comfortably beating North Melbourne by 86 points in the Preliminary Final. The Hawks defeated Fitzroy in the Qualifying Final by just 4 points and then defeated North Melbourne by 40 points to progress to the Grand Final.
      Hawthorn |    Essendon |
Despite losingGary Buckenara to a knee injury in the opening minutes, Hawthorn asserted their strength early leading by 18 points at quarter time. They then completely dominated the rest of the game, scoring seven goals to one in the second quarter and holding the Bombers goalless in the third quarter, whilst adding four goals of their own. CaptainLeigh Matthews kicked six goals and the Hawks had nine other goal kickers. TheNorm Smith Medal was awarded to Hawthorn'sColin Robertson for being judged the best player afield.
The margin of victory was at the time the biggest in Grand Final history, beating the record which had been set byRichmond in the1980 VFL Grand Final, and stood until it was broken by Hawthorn in the1988 VFL Grand Final.
This match was the first in what was to be an all-time record run of seven consecutive Grand Final appearances by the Hawks. It was also the first of three consecutive Grand Finals to be contested between these teams, with the Bombers winning the1984 VFL Grand Final and1985 VFL Grand Final.
| 1983 VFL Grand Final | |||||
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| Saturday, 24 September (14:30 (UTC+10)) | Hawthorn | def. | Essendon | MCG,Melbourne (crowd: 110,332) | Report[1] |
| 5.6 (36) 12.10 (82) 16.18 (114) 20.20 (140) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 3.0 (18) 4.1 (25) 4.3 (27) 8.9 (57) | Umpires: N. Nash & K. Smith Norm Smith Medal:Colin Robertson (Hawthorn) Television broadcast:Seven Network National anthem:Glenn Shorrock | ||
| Matthews 6,Byrne 3,Greene 2,Judge 2,Loveridge 2,Kennedy,Knights,O'Halloran,Tuck,Wallace | Goals | Daniher 2,Copping,Ezard,Kink,Madden,Walsh,Wood | |||
| Robertson,Mew,Tuck,Matthews,Kennedy,Greene,Knights,Ayres,Wallace,Eade | Best | Daniher,Foulds,Madden,Heard | |||
| Buckenara (knee) | Injuries | Carey (shoulder) | |||
| Judge (striking),Byrne (striking) | Reports | Merrett (striking – two incidents) | |||
