As the club prepares to move to its new state-of-the-art training and administration base at Melbourne Airport next week, Essendon historian Gregor McCaskie reflects on the key moments at Windy Hill over its history.

The Flying Dutchman and the Knight

Two of football’s most popular and exciting players in the 1970s and 1980s were Essendon’s Paul Vander Haar and Hawthorn’s Peter Knights. Both became 200-game players, both won premierships and both were fan favourites.  

Another thing that marked them both was their great high marking ability; both Vander and Knights were renowned for their ability to pull in big contested marks. In long and successful careers it was their high marking that most fans remember and the game most exemplified this best took place at Windy Hill in 1978.

In June that year Hawthorn visited Windy Hill for their round 11 clash. Hawthorn was sitting second and heading towards a third premiership in eight seasons, Essendon was sitting fifth and heading nowhere.

Vander Haar at 20 was in just his second season of League football but was already someone to watch after being named the League’s recruit of the year, and being voted runner-up in the club’s best and fairest in his debut season.

Knights was already a champion, six years older, a premiership player and in his 10^th season. An injury in 1976 cost him five games and a Brownlow Medal. It was Knights’ 173^rd game and Vander’s 24^th.

Over 24,000 fans were at Windy Hill as the two men matched up on each other from the bounce, Vander at centre half-forward, Knights at centre half-back, to witness one of the game’s great marking duels by two of the game’s best.

Time after time, not giving in an inch they flew for mark after mark, each player pushing the other to produce their best.  Most remarkably, Vander Haar had only returned to football six weeks earlier in round 6 after sustaining a serious neck injury in a trail bike accident in the off season.

Essendon stayed in touch at each break before Hawthorn got away and won by 29 points.

At the end of the day Peter Knights had taken 10 contested marks and Vander Haar had taken six and kicked two goals. Later Knights said that he and Vander Haar had gone for 25 marks that day.

Vander Haar and Knights would play against each other over another seven seasons, contest the 1983 grand final, and take plenty more high marks. But it was this one mild winter’s day at Windy Hill in June 1978 that has gone down in history as having showcased one of our game’s most exciting skills by two of our game’s best.