Season 3 1973

Attempted murder, treachery, gunplay and arson interrupt the promise of a quiet weekend for the Matlock police on the Sunday morning.

A chance involvement in a minor crime leads Jimmy Wade, who turned to stealing to support his deserted mother, and his friends into a nightmare situation ending in violence and death.

Three drunken youths force a young girl, Lynda Wilson, into their car at knifepoint and trigger off an explosive situation that involves Det. Curtis personally. Her father, Charles Wilson, talks her out of telling the police about the assault in order to save the embarrassment of appearing in court. He does not realise his information is vital to the police, who believe the same youths are also responsible for bashing Const. Young. Library books found at the scene of the attack provide a vital clue in tracking down the yobbos.

An existing feud between neighbouring farmers is sparked off to the point of murder when a childish prank results in a near fatal accident.

A struggling Matlock farmer is injured by a land mine in his sprout field. Successive explosions have the police puzzled until they start delving into the past.

A group of prisoners escape from jail and hole up in the Matlock area. Unable to lie low, their desperate presence thrusts the Matlock police into a major crime wave, resulting in violence and bloodshed.

Telephone threats confirm that a trotting mishap was no accident. The Matlock police, kept busy with Cup Week criminals, are called in to protect the driver who is up to his neck in personal trouble.

When a top Australian pop group comes to Matlock, the police have their hands full coping with robbery, groupies and drug pushing.

Det. Sgt. Maddern and Const. Hogan are returning from taking a prisoner to Melbourne when they are forced to make an overnight stop at Goanna Bend. ‘Big Jim’ MacBain, the publican, and his semi-alcoholic wife Lucy, claim they can hear the singing of their five-year-old daughter Brandy outside at night. Brandy was lost in the bush without trace, despite a massive search, a year before. Maddern and Hogan are confronted by some odd characters in town as they investigate the phenomenon.

A family holiday does not turn out as planned, and police find a web of intrigue, doublecross and a near tragedy.

Sen. Const. Hogan's protection is not enough to foil the ingenious bandits who rob a payroll on its way to one of Matlock's outlying timber mills.

Matlock police have a problem on their hands when a young boy is struck down by a car driven by a mentally disturbed youth, and the child's mother refuses police access to her house.

The perpetrator of a series of violent knife attacks on soldiers leads police to an ex-soldier, who is motivated by a desire for revenge for what he considers wrongful dismissal from the Army.

When $500,000 is stolen in a commando-like raid on an armoured truck, the Matlock police find themselves up against a hand picked team of experts.

Farmer Ted Woods is driven to take desperate action when he finds everything he loves in jeopardy and the Matlock police apparently unable to help. Det. Curtis is promoted to Sergeant and transferred to Melbourne.

Notes: Final episode with Grigor Taylor as Sen. Det. Alan Curtis.

Deacon Gallegar thinks a wild orgy is taking place by the river. Wally Struthers meets Gallegar's daughter Kathy who collapses after having drunk too much home brew - Wally thinks she is dead and puts her in the boot of his car, causing police to suspect a murder. A bandit planning a robbery unknowingly meets up with Sen. Det. York while they are both travelling to Matlock. All this plus a runaway tractor causes bedlam at the Matlock police station.

Notes: First episode with Tom Richards as Sen. Det. Steve York. The opening title sequence was edited to omit the credit for Tom Richards due to a fundamental part of the plot being uncertainty about York's identity.

When Big Jacko returns to his wife and family after eight years, he finds the only thing that hasn't changed is his violent temper. Despite help from Maddern, Jacko cannot cope with his tormentors.

The Matlock police find themselves personally involved in a wave of violent robberies when Const. Hogan's younger brother becomes an unwilling disciple of a religious fanatic.

A raid on a two-up school in the bush results in the discovery that someone is making illicit moonshine in Matlock. Investigations lead the police to a payroll robbery and the strange relationships between two fathers and their sons.

A prodigal son returns home to find that his brother has been charged with assaulting a local cattle buyer. Investigations by the Matlock police unearth a nest of local crime.

When two riderless horses return to their stables, the Matlock police start a search for the honeymoon couple who hired them. They uncover more than they expected.

A coffin discovered on a young couple's block of land leads the Matlock police into personal danger and causes the unearthing of a bizarre religious sect.

Mike Miller breaks out of prison, swearing to kill the man who put him there - Sen. Det. Steve York.

An insurance company executive sets out to locate a missing payroll. His misguided inquiries lead to the whole of Matlock being thrown into chaos.

Interstate criminals greet a local boxing champion’s triumphant return to Matlock with threats, beatings and a kidnapping.

A salesman's marital problems and a tragic tractor accident combine to involve the Matlock police in a race against time to save an innocent man from a deranged killer.

When lone prospector Harry Anderson exchanges some old bank notes for their equivalent in decimal currency, he sparks off a manhunt that becomes a race between the Matlock police and a pair of gold-hungry brothers.

Violent criminals go on a rampage of bashing and robbing. The Matlock police are mystified as to their identity and motive.

A crime of passion has repercussions that threaten to get out of control unless Det. Sgt. Maddern can stop them.

A corrupt security complex uses graft, intimidation and violence in an attempt to establish a protection racket in Matlock.

A kidnapped child escapes only to get lost in the bush. Rescue operations are complicated by the child's neurotic mother and her criminal lover.

15-year-old Jill Evans has fallen in love with Det. Snr. Sgt. Maddern because she sees him as a direct contrast to her father. She corners Maddern in the Matlock police station, rips open her blouse and throws her arms around his neck, and at that moment they are discovered. Jill accuses Maddern of seducing her and claims he is the father of her unborn child, but Maddern later manages to clear his name.

A terror campaign against Matlock's 'Citizen Of The Year' has police and the victim baffled. It culminates in violence, rape and attempted murder.

Investigations into the mysterious disappearance of overhead power lines reveals the existence of a well-organised gang and its bizarre leader.

Arnie Colleano, a once famous American comedian, plays at the Matlock RSL club. A violent crime in his hotel involves the police in a showbiz world of alcohol, sex and divided loyalties.

An investigation into a fatal accident at a remote mining camp leads the Matlock police into a double mystery.

Robbo, a charming rogue, succeeds in a series of outlandish schemes only to fail in his final objective. He manages to stay one jump ahead of the Matlock police and a couple of Sydney criminals.

A young widow and her son are held hostage by two extortionists who threaten to blow Matlock sky high with stolen dynamite. The 'Angel Of Mercy' helicopter, which is in Matlock for a demonstration at a charity football match, is called in after one of the criminals crashes his car during a high speed police chase.

Matlock police are called to the Mount Keira ski slopes when a ski instructor, Gunther Strauss, is reported missing and feared murdered. To solve the mystery, the police have to delve into the private lives of the Mount Keira guests.

Cathy Phillips, a 16-year-old schoolgirl, sensitive and highly strung, is fearful of her stepfather who mistreats her both physically and psychologically. A social worker has Cathy placed in her care, much against Maddern's wishes, but the situation backfires on her when Cathy runs away and is revealed as a definite suicide risk.

A man charged with having brutally murdered his de facto wife with an axe was found not guilty and released. He arrives in Matlock with his new de facto to write a book, and the police discover that legal precedents prevent them from laying a hand on him.

A criminal with a history of violence and a long memory returns to Matlock, and starts a wave of terror and death.

The owner of a once prosperous horse stud resorts to buying stolen cattle to make ends meet. Dealing with the cattle duffers leads to attempted rape and death.

Sen. Det. York is accused of being an accomplice in a robbery, and his unorthodox efforts to clear his name get him into even more trouble.

A man's disappearance triggers off a chain of tragedies. No single person is to blame, but all must share a degree of responsibility.

Matlock police are short on leads when a security guard is callously murdered during a $15,000 robbery, until unexpected help comes from a mentally handicapped child.

A young man just released from prison returns to Matlock at the same time as a number of strange attacks on young girls occur. Is Daniel the innocent he claims, or is he responsible?