Australian football makes history

By Phil Mercer
BBC News, Sydney

Geelong has not won a grand final since 1963

It has been a record-breaking day at the Australian Rules Football League Grand Final in the southern city of Melbourne.

Favourites Geelong have thrashed Port Adelaide by more than 100 points. It is the biggest winning margin in grand final history.

Almost 100,000 fans crammed into the Melbourne Cricket Ground to watch history unfold.

Geelong, the side from an industrial city near Melbourne, was unstoppable.

It scored 163 points. Port Adelaide could only manage a meagre 44.

To lose a showpiece event in such calamitous fashion will be a humiliating experience.

Celebrations

The party in Geelong will be a long one. The last time the club won the Australian Rules Football League grand final was in 1963.

The city has a rich heritage, thanks in part to the Victorian gold rush of the mid 19th Century.

The local football team has been an important part of the community. After such a long wait for sporting success, the golden days have finally returned to Geelong.