1998 AFL Grand Final

Grand final of the 1998 Australian Football League season November 2025 December 2017 December 2017 AFL 1998 1998 AFL Grand Final Logo.png MCG99.jpg The Melbourne Cricket Ground, where the 1998 AFL Grand Final took place. 50pxKan KAN 50px ADE 3.2 (20) 4.3 (27) 9.11 (65) 15.15 (105) 4.4 (28) 6.15 (51) 8.15 (63) 8.22 (70) 8.22 (70) 15.15 (105) 26 September 1998 Melbourne Cricket Ground 94,431 Kangaroos Andrew Coates (6), Hayden Kennedy (7), Darren Goldspink (32) Kangaroos Punt Road End Muhammad Ali, Mark Seymour, Rob Guest, Jane Scali and Michael Cormick Rob Guest Andrew McLeod () Malcolm Blight Seven Network Bruce McAvaney (host and commentator)Dennis Cometti (commentator)Sandy Roberts (commentator)Tim Watson (expert commentator)Leigh Matthews (expert commentator)Peter McKenna (“sharp shooter”)Robert DiPierdomenico (boundary rider)Neil Kerley (boundary rider) 1997 1999 The 1998 AFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Adelaide Crows and the North Melbourne Kangaroos, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne on 26 September 1998. It was the 102nd annual grand final of the Australian Football League (formerly the Victorian Football League), staged to determine the premiers for the 1998 AFL season. The match, attended by 94,431 spectators, was won by Adelaide by a margin of 35 points.Connolly Rohan 2021-04-11 From the Archives, 1998: Crows defeat wasteful Roos in grand final https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/from-the-archives-1998-crows-defeat-wasteful-roos-in-grand-final-20210407-p57h9k.html 2025-11-05 The Age en This was the second consecutive premiership for the Crows and to date their last premiership win. Background 1998 AFL season 1998 AFL finals series This match saw the Kangaroos playing in their second grand final in three years, after their triumph in the 1996 AFL Grand Final. The Crows were competing in their second consecutive grand final, and were seeking back-to-back premierships after winning the 1997 AFL Grand Final. Craig Sholl for the Kangaroos was to play his 200th game. At the conclusion of the home and away season, North Melbourne had finished first on the AFL ladder with 16 wins and 6 losses, winning the McClelland Trophy. They had won their last nine matches. Adelaide had a less dominant season and finished fifth with 13 wins and 9 losses. Adelaide fell to a heavy loss in its qualifying final against Melbourne at the MCG by 48 points, but still progressed to play a semi-final against Sydney at the SCG, which they won by 27 points. Adelaide then progressed to the preliminary final against the Western Bulldogs at the MCG, and won convincingly by 68 points. North Melbourne won its qualifying final against Essendon by 22 points at the MCG, sending them to a home preliminary final against Melbourne. They won that match by 30 points to progress to the grand final. These finals wins extended North Melbourne's winning streak to eleven matches entering the grand final. The Kangaroos entered the game as heavy favourites. Match summary 1st 2nd 3rd Final Adelaide 3.2 (20) 4.3 (27) 9.11 (65) 15.15 (105) North Melbourne 4.4 (28) 6.15 (51) 8.15 (63) 8.22 (70) North Melbourne attacked constantly during the first half, however returned a wasteful 6.15 (51) for the first half to Adelaide's 4.3 (27). They led by just four goals despite having 21 scoring shots to just seven in the first half. Adelaide then dominated the second half. A wasteful 5.8 to North Melbourne's 2.0 in the third quarter saw Adelaide lead by two points at three-quarter time. Then, Adelaide scored 6.4 in the final quarter, holding North Melbourne (0.7) goalless, to open a comfortable lead, and ultimately win the match by 35 points. Adelaide became the first team since Hawthorn in 1988–1989 to win back-to-back premierships. In the end, both teams had 30 scoring shots, but the Crows converted at 50% and the Kangaroos at just 26%. Darren Jarman was sensational with 5 goals and Andrew McLeod was awarded the Norm Smith Medal for being judged the best player afield, for the second straight year. He became only the second player (after Gary Ayres of Hawthorn) to win the medal twice, and the first player to win it in successive years. Adelaide is one of just three clubs in modern times to have won the premiership after finishing lower than fourth on the premiership ladder after the home-and-away season, and the only club that has finished outside the top four but still won the premiership after losing their first finals game (The Melbourne Football Club won the premiership after finishing sixth after the fourteen-game home-and-away season in 1900, qualifying for the semi-finals after a strong performance in the three-week sectional round robin that followed the home-and-away season; the Western Bulldogs won the premiership after finishing seventh in the home-and-away season in 2016; the Brisbane Lions won the premiership after finishing fifth in the home-and-away season in 2024). The finals system was changed in AFL season 2000 to the current format, where every club outside the top four has to win every final to progress. Pre-match entertainment The 1998 Grand Final pre-match entertainment was particularly notable for the appearance of former World Heavyweight Boxing champion Muhammad Ali, as he did a lap of honour of the ground. Rob Guest performed This Is The Moment as the champion made his way around the ground. Guest later sang the national anthem. Donna Fisk and Michael Cristian performed "Rock 'N Footy (Rock The G)". The song performed at every grand final, Waltzing Matilda, was performed by Jane Scali and Michael Cormick. Teams _3stripesonwhite _whitesides 000099 000099 000099 Kangaroos _adelaidecrows16h _redsides _hoops_red_gold 000066 ffffff 000066 Adelaide Kangaroos NM 11 Glenn Archer 4 Mick Martyn 37 Adam Simpson 28 Byron Pickett 5 Jason McCartney 8 Robert Scott 34 David King 10 Anthony Stevens 15 Winston Abraham 22 Mark Roberts 18 Wayne Carey (Capt) 13 Martin Pike 29 Brent Harvey 24 Craig Sholl 6 Shannon Grant 31 Corey McKernan 12 John Blakey 26 Peter Bell 33 Brett Allison 16 Matthew Capuano 17 Glenn Freeborn 3 Anthony Rock Denis Pagan Adelaide Ade 28 Kane Johnson 34 Ben Hart 26 Mark Bickley (Capt) 7 Nigel Smart 44 Peter Caven 13 Shane Ellen 30 Peter Vardy 36 Simon Goodwin 29 James Thiessen 23 Andrew McLeod 10 Matthew Robran 11 Brett James 32 Mark Ricciuto 15 David Pittman 9 Tyson Edwards 52 Shaun Rehn 3 Darren Jarman 5 Kym Koster 14 Matthew Connell 19 Mark Stevens 31 Ben Marsh 33 Andrew Eccles Malcolm Blight Match details 1998 AFL Grand Final Saturday, 26 September 2:30pm Ade 3.2 (20) 4.3 (27) 9.11 (65) 15.15 (105) Jarman 5, Smart 3, Vardy 2, James, Pittman, Johnson, Thiessen, Ricciuto A Kan 4.4 (28) 6.15 (51) 8.15 (63) 8.22 (70) Blakey, Pike, Abraham, Carey, Roberts, Bell, Allison, Simpson MCG 94,431 Coates (6), Kennedy (7), Goldspink (32) Norm Smith Medal Andrew McLeod Seven Network Rob Guest Kangaroos won the coin toss and kicked to the Punt Road end in the first quarter See also 1998 AFL season 1998 AFL finals series It's the Crows Again song by Steve Dundon. References Category:VFL/AFL Grand Finals Category:Adelaide Football Club Category:North Melbourne Football Club Category:1998 AFL season Afl Grand Final, 1998