Good to see the Hun do a piece on the history between Port and Willy the ABC TV news also had a short item about the VFL GF in the sports section last night.
Just the latest chapter in suburbs' 125-year war
Adrian Dunn
From:Herald Sun
September 22, 201112:00AM
GERRY "The Monster" Callahan tells the tale that before one Williamstown-Port Melbourne grand final in the 1950s, one of the butchers in Bay St put a pig's head bearing his name in the shop window.
Callahan, the Williamstown captain, dismissed it as just another example of the antagonism between the bitter rivals.
But Callahan admitted he began to worry when each Port Melbourne player was given a skewer, which they speared into the pig's head, still bearing his moniker, which had been strategically placed at the end of the player's race on match day.
Tommy Lahiff, a legendary Port Melbourne player and coach, once said the competition between the Borough and Williamstown was so intense that players from both teams feared for their safety whenever they played away.
"It wasn't uncommon for the opposition supporters to throw yonnies (stones) at you when you were leaving the ground," Lahiff said.
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While Callaghan and Lahiff may have added a liberal dose of "mayo" to the story over time, it encapsulates the rivalry between Port Melbourne and Williamstown, who square off on Sunday at Etihad Stadium in the VFL grand final.
Port Melbourne and Williamstown's rivalry is as old as the game or indeed as the competition itself.
The bayside suburbs, separated by Hobsons Bay, have been enemies since 1886 when Port Melbourne joined the competition, two years after Williamstown. And the clubs have been at it like the Hatfields and McCoys ever since.
Stories of fierce rivalries on the field and in the terraces have become folklore as these two great traditional clubs - both with 15 premierships apiece, although two of Williamstown's were in Division 2 - have gone to "war" a competition-high 235 times.
Carlton and Collingwood, the AFL's most storied rivalry, have meet only a handful more.
Port Melbourne holds the bragging rights with 125 wins to Williamstown's 104 with six draws, but it's the Seagulls that have had the last laugh in grand finals.
Williamstown has emerged with four premierships to Port's solitary flag in their five meetings.
Remarkably, this is the first grand final meeting between these two clubs since 1964 when Port Melbourne won.
What adds spice, not that any more is needed, is that Port Melbourne is a stand-alone VFL club while Williamstown is aligned to Western Bulldogs and will feature 15 AFL-listed players on Sunday. It's David versus Goliath.
Williamstown would love nothing more than to spoil Port Melbourne's bid for a perfect season.
The Seagulls know that sinking feeling of winning every home-and-away match, only to lose when it matters most in the finals.
Williamstown won all 20 games in 1957, lost the second semi-final and then went down in the preliminary final -- to Port Melbourne.
