In 1989 the Footscray Football Club had the stench of death to it. After a promising mid-80s period, finances had dried up, and energy was sapped. On-field results followed. Debt mounted. The club was technically insolvent.

The flashpoint came in 1988 amidst dwindling crowd and lack of government or council support its Western Oval home became a political split in the club.  Without a viable home how would they survive?

Things didn’t get better in 1989 and when the VFL did the hard sell on mergers and ground rationalisation that year Footscray was effectively on death row.

The new president in 1989 Nick Columb was left in an unenviable position as he made decisions that were the most important in the history of the club.

Dennis Galimberti was the GM of Footscray Football Club in 1989 working under Columb’s presidency – his role in the Fitzroy Bulldogs saga is pivotal and without his actions football history would be very different.

An heroic figure in the west, but also described as the ‘unguided missile’ by VFL House, Dennis Galimberti joins us to talk about the events that led to the merger of Fitzroy and Footscray Football clubs in October 1989.

The Greatest Season That Was Presents...The Fitzroy Bulldogs

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