Pain of lost Lyndale Football clubmen still raw, 20 years on The jerseys of the six fallen clubmen hold pride of place in the Lyndale clubrooms, behind stalwarts Murray Collard, Ken Stewart and Ed McLean. Family and friends gather at the Sandown Park Hotel on September 17 every year for a quiet drink in their memory. Mark Baxter, 31. His brother Lance, 29. Glenn King, 31. Dean Prendergast, 24. Scott Young, 23. Kevin Connor, 22. They were the six men who died when Lyndale Football Club's 1993 end-of-season trip to Tasmania descended into tragedy. A light plane carrying them to Launceston airport struck a power line, slewed through a paddock and burst into flames. A picture of the wrecked plane from the Herald Sun, two days after the fatal crash that killed six Lyndale footballers. Four survived, including the pilot, a Lyndale player who had arranged the hire of the Piper Navajo from Moorabbin. The club had been formed seven years earlier and in 1993 made the finals for the first time, in Division 4 of the Southern league. There was a sense of achievement among everyone attached to Lyndale. Soon that gave way to prolonged grief. Twenty years on, Murray Collard says it's still painful to think of the loss. "I remember it like it was yesterday," he says. I can still hear the guys' voices, see their faces. I think about what happened to them all the time. He's sitting with fellow Lyndale stalwart Ed McLean on the concrete steps that overlook Barry Powell Reserve, reflecting on the deaths of mates and teammates. Below them a few players have a casual kick and mark before training, the sound of boot on leather punctuating the conversation. Collard and McLean made the trip to Launceston. They were young players at the time of the crash and became long-serving senior men and presidents of the club. They sit and share stories about the six, all of whom lived around the club in North Dandenong. The Baxter brothers liked a good time. They would stay back late for a drink on Thursday nights. Lance had been captain and was full back. Mark was a ruckman and won the 1990 best and fairest. Scott Young was a star too, small but tough and the 1992 club champion. Kevin O'Connor played at centre half back and gave his opponents nothing. Big Dean Prendergast was an emerging ruckman. Engaged to be married. Glenn King was a past player and devoted supporter. They also talk of the survivors, Scott Blakely, Alan "Ginger" Fisher, Kenny Stewart and the pilot, Roger Rodrigues. All were seriously injured, suffering burns and broken bones. None played for Lyndale again. Blakely is usually the first person to the Sandown Park Hotel every year, with Stewart not far behind. Dean Prendergast was an emerging ruckman for the Pumas. Collard and Terry King arranged the trip to Tassie. In previous years the players had gone to Albury, Phillip Island and even Coronet Bay, a sleepy town no doubt woken by its playful visitors. But in 1993 they decided they wanted to go "interstate on a tight budget," Collard said. It was all set for the night of Friday, September 17. There would be three planes taking off, a 10-seater and two eight-seaters. Collard had flown to Tasmania in a six-seater earlier in the year and it had been a "pretty scary ride." For the trip away he put himself down for the 10-seater, more comfortable about a larger plane. But he ended up on an eight-seater. "A few of us went to the Dingley pub for a few beers beforehand," Collard said. Later on, a couple of the boys dropped in and said the pilot who was going to fly one of the smaller ones was ready to go. We'd had a heart-starter or two so we said, 'Yeah, come on, let's go'. There was just the right number of us. So we all hopped in and off we went. Mark Baxter won Lyndale's 1990 best and fairest in the ruck. In an uncanny coincidence, the plane struck trouble. As the players shuffled cards, the door flew open. Its handle was broken and the players had to hold it closed. Their hands were soon numb from cold air. They later compared it to holding them in a bucket of ice. The pilot diverted to Flinders Island. "We were all kissing the ground when we landed," Collard says. They adjourned to the pub. Not long after, a policeman entered and asked for King, Collard and the pilot. Pulling them aside, he said there had been an accident at Launceston. But he couldn't report anything further. "There were no mobiles in those days so no one knew what was going on," Collard said. It was just mayhem. We found out people had died but we didn't know who had died. They flew to Launceston the next day, saw the crash scene and learned which of their teammates had perished. Mark's brother, Lance Baxter, once captained the Pumas. Terry King, a Lyndale foundation member, was on the flight with Collard. "We had our drama and we thought we'd have a great story to tell the boys the next day," he said. Didn't work out like that. It was a bloody tragedy. He was tight with the Baxter boys, regarding them more as brothers than mates. McLean went on the third plane from Moorabbin. The trip was uneventful. But he sensed trouble later in the flight. The pilot had been jovial and chatty. He was suddenly silent. As the plane came in to Launceston, McLean saw flashing lights and ambulances and he thought there had been a bad car crash near the airport. As we landed, the pilot said, 'Guys, guys, settle down, there's been an accident. The news services are keeping it quiet for now but you've got 10 minutes to ring home and tell your parents you're OK'," McLean recalled. So we were rushed straight in. There was a bank of phones and we rang home. But I was like 'Muzz' (Collard). We knew there'd been an accident and our mates were involved but we didn't know who'd passed away or who'd survived. It was pretty confronting. The players returned to Melbourne the next day, heading straight to the Lyndale social room. It was filled with people supporting and comforting each other. Details of memorial service for the fallen men at the Lyndale clubrooms. Numerous sporting clubs reached out to help, donating money for the players' families. The Alberton Football League contributed $500. Heidelberg RSL Golf Club did a whip-around and raised $65. Ferntree Gully Bowling Club sent a cheque for $28. Adrian Rollins, a reporter who covered the tragedy, attached a $20 note to a letter of sympathy. Tungamah Football Club tips in for Lyndale following the tragedy. Secretary Linda Evans said she was "absolutely amazed" at the generosity. "It was remarkable how everyone rallied around us," Terry King said. McLean and Collard say the club had been tight-knit because many of the players were locals and grew up together or knew of each other. They say it became tighter still after the accident, which a Tasmanian coroner later attributed to Rodrigues's "skill and judgement" being "tested beyond breaking point." There was an influx of recruits in 1994, with players wanting to help the club overcome the death of the players. The Pumas won their first senior premiership in 1995. The players' jumpers were retired after the accident. And, last year, McLean had them framed and hung on a wall near the bar. He believes it keeps them close and helps newcomers understand their stature at Lyndale. Their story needs to be told. It's a major part of the history of this club," Ed McLean says. We can't let them be forgotten. Were you involved with the club or did you know the men? Tell us your story below