I'm still dancing around the house after this victory! It was sooooo sweet!

I wasn't convinced we could win this game though of course I was hopeful! I didn't know if the rain would help or hinder our cause and I'm still not sure, but we came away with the win and that's what matters! Woooo Hoooo Tigers!

Of course Richo is the star of the game, and for good reason with 7 of 10 goals belonging to him! Looks like he's recovered fine from that hammy injury! But this page isn't about Richo, it's all about Chaffey so let's get to it!

I had the live audio feed from "Radio 2". I had a clear and perfect signal through 12.5 minutes into the second quarter when suddenly I lost the audio. I resorted to following the game via the scoreboard, only seeing updates every few seconds! It was torture!! I was finally able to get the audio feed back late in the 3rd quarter!

There are two plays in particular, both occurring in the 4th quarter, that I'd like to mention in regard to Chaffey's performance.

Richmond had the lead by 3 points when the radio callers announced, "Free kick for pulling on the jersey by Chaffey..." The Swannies kicked and took the lead by 3 points. My heart sunk to my toes.

I always want Chaffey to play well of course! He is, after all, my player of the season!!! The game was touch and go to this point, and I so very, very much didn't want the game to hinge on this one play! I think the play and resulting score had the potential to be a momentum shifter, and I think we were lucky that the boys came right back with a goal of our own!

The other big play that could have changed the momentum, and perhaps did, came when the Swans were on the attack about 5-6 minutes after the play I just mentioned. It looked like things were going the way of the Swans when out of nowhere Chaffey stepped in with terrific defensive play to shut them down! I'm only basing my opinions on the radio broadcast, but it seemed to me that this play made a huge statement to Sydney that we weren't going down. The Swans never took the lead from that point on and we went ahead to win the game. (Although I thought the final siren would never sound!)

I haven't found much in the papers yet about Chaffey, but I did find this snippet. Once again, the papers confirm Chaffey's value to the team!

Richo's seven snap Tigers' away hoodoo
By Jessica Halloran
Sydney, May 10, 2004
In the second quarter, the Tigers struggled to get the ball into the forward line, while Sydney was on song. But even though the Swans were getting inside the 45-metre arc, their delivery was often inaccurate and the stoic Tiger defence, led by Ray Hall and Mark Chaffey, was up to the task. Wayne Campbell was also impressive, running the ball out quickly.