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- Sep 1, 2009
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It was less than 14 months ago, I left the MCG in despair and pure anger after losing by one point against the old enemy. This was a game we had lead the entire game until Lachie Schultz had his best ever game for them and kicked the winner very late in the game. This was the game we had a big lead over the old enemy and somehow blew it. The same opponent that had beaten us in a very close grand final the year before had blew our chance of finishing top four on the ladder and getting the double chance. I was very convinced our club was cursed.
All I wanted to see was just ONE premiership as an adult, one that I could actually be old enough to appreciate, but after that I was absolutely convinced it was never going to happen. I thought that we could never win a flag with Joe Daniher and Eric Hipwood as our two key forwards. Daniher I thought was too hot and cold, and Hipwood, well the less said the better.
When we made finals, I was genuinely thinking that I'd rather see us lose to Carlton in the week 1 wildcard final and get our inevitable misery done and over with, then for us to beat Carlton then have a "famous win" in the week 2 wildcard final before getting our hopes up and inevitably another episode of severe heartbreak in either the prelim or grand final again. I cringed very hard at the "BELIEVE" motto the club dished out. "Believe? I'm not falling for this con again", I thought to myself.
When we were 44 points down against GWS in the week 2 final last year I thought to myself at least I won't have to endure heartbreak at the very pointy end of the season again, that I'd have my misery done and over with. Of course we all know what happens from here, we have an amazing comeback and Daniher has the quarter of his life and changes his entire legacy at our club off it.
We are into the prelims again - against Geelong - who prevented us at our only ever chance of playing in the Grand Final at our own ground four years ago, and absolutely destroyed us at the MCG two years ago, the same venue we'd meet them again. I was hopeful we'd beat them this time but was smart enough not to get my hopes up. "The win last week against GWS whilst amazing, was designed to get my hopes up for this week before the inevitable heartbreak happens yet again", was what was going through my mind all week. I knew that beating Geelong in the prelim at the MCG would have been a much tougher task than beating Sydney or Port Adelaide the following week if we somehow got there. The game starts and we start well to lead at quarter time, but Geelong have a big second quarter and get to a lead of 25 points in the third. "Inevitable", I thought to myself. We pull off another comeback and go into three quarter time in front. My nerves at an all time high. Geelong had won four premierships in the past 17 years at that stage, and as for us nothing, all we had was a decade of missing finals and choking in them since we started playing finals again. The last quarter is an arm wrestle that we manage to stay in front of it until about three minutes left. Zac Bailey gets run down, ball goes into the other end and Ollie Henry has a wild snap that puts Geelong in front, by one ****ing point, with less than three minutes to go. "I knew this was going to happen, this team always gets my hopes up and shits the bed when it matters", I thought to myself. I had instant PTSD over the game 15 months prior when we had a big lead against Melbourne with a few minutes left at the exact same ground, and lost by one point. I also had instant PTSD of the previous year's grand final against the old enemy where we were leading with less than 6 minutes to go, and lost at the exact same ground. And that game a few weeks earlier where we lose to the old enemy again by ONE ****ing point at the exact same ground. I never felt so hopeless as a footy fan ever, this was happening all over again. "Why are the footy gods so ****ing cruel", I thought to myself, "they've won FOUR flags in the past 17 years, they've beaten us in prelims TWICE in the past four years, I JUST WANT TO SEE ONE FLAG AS AN ADULT!"
This time however we didn't get our heads down. Ah Chee gets an instant reply goal and puts us back in front. Cam Rayner then kicks the goal of his life, Jack Payne comes up with a clutch tackle. Rhys Stanley gets a free kick and it hits the post, then the siren goes. WE ACTUALLY WON!!! HOLY **** WE ACTUALLY WON!!! I was in disbelief, while I knew that this win would have meant nothing if we didn't win the following week, it felt like the curse was broken, it felt like over two decades of hurt supporting this club was undone in that instant. I'd never had and probably never will experience an emotional roller coaster like I did in the past half-hour, I was about to cry tears of sadness, but I ended up crying tears of happiness. I don't think I'll ever go to a better game than that!
Thankfully we go onto do the business against the Swans the following weekend and I got to see the one thing I've been wanting to see in my adult life more than any other, and last Saturday I got to see it again. We are now back-to-back premiers. The emotional rollercoaster of supporting the club through the really bad times, whether that be not making finals and only getting joy from narrowly avoiding the spoon, or making finals but constantly choking, has made me realise never to take this golden run for granted. We may win more premierships in the next few years, we may not. No one can predict the future. But whatever happens I will never take this for granted. It's all the ups and downs over the decades of supporting this club that has made these back-to-back flags so sweet.
All I wanted to see was just ONE premiership as an adult, one that I could actually be old enough to appreciate, but after that I was absolutely convinced it was never going to happen. I thought that we could never win a flag with Joe Daniher and Eric Hipwood as our two key forwards. Daniher I thought was too hot and cold, and Hipwood, well the less said the better.
When we made finals, I was genuinely thinking that I'd rather see us lose to Carlton in the week 1 wildcard final and get our inevitable misery done and over with, then for us to beat Carlton then have a "famous win" in the week 2 wildcard final before getting our hopes up and inevitably another episode of severe heartbreak in either the prelim or grand final again. I cringed very hard at the "BELIEVE" motto the club dished out. "Believe? I'm not falling for this con again", I thought to myself.
When we were 44 points down against GWS in the week 2 final last year I thought to myself at least I won't have to endure heartbreak at the very pointy end of the season again, that I'd have my misery done and over with. Of course we all know what happens from here, we have an amazing comeback and Daniher has the quarter of his life and changes his entire legacy at our club off it.
We are into the prelims again - against Geelong - who prevented us at our only ever chance of playing in the Grand Final at our own ground four years ago, and absolutely destroyed us at the MCG two years ago, the same venue we'd meet them again. I was hopeful we'd beat them this time but was smart enough not to get my hopes up. "The win last week against GWS whilst amazing, was designed to get my hopes up for this week before the inevitable heartbreak happens yet again", was what was going through my mind all week. I knew that beating Geelong in the prelim at the MCG would have been a much tougher task than beating Sydney or Port Adelaide the following week if we somehow got there. The game starts and we start well to lead at quarter time, but Geelong have a big second quarter and get to a lead of 25 points in the third. "Inevitable", I thought to myself. We pull off another comeback and go into three quarter time in front. My nerves at an all time high. Geelong had won four premierships in the past 17 years at that stage, and as for us nothing, all we had was a decade of missing finals and choking in them since we started playing finals again. The last quarter is an arm wrestle that we manage to stay in front of it until about three minutes left. Zac Bailey gets run down, ball goes into the other end and Ollie Henry has a wild snap that puts Geelong in front, by one ****ing point, with less than three minutes to go. "I knew this was going to happen, this team always gets my hopes up and shits the bed when it matters", I thought to myself. I had instant PTSD over the game 15 months prior when we had a big lead against Melbourne with a few minutes left at the exact same ground, and lost by one point. I also had instant PTSD of the previous year's grand final against the old enemy where we were leading with less than 6 minutes to go, and lost at the exact same ground. And that game a few weeks earlier where we lose to the old enemy again by ONE ****ing point at the exact same ground. I never felt so hopeless as a footy fan ever, this was happening all over again. "Why are the footy gods so ****ing cruel", I thought to myself, "they've won FOUR flags in the past 17 years, they've beaten us in prelims TWICE in the past four years, I JUST WANT TO SEE ONE FLAG AS AN ADULT!"
This time however we didn't get our heads down. Ah Chee gets an instant reply goal and puts us back in front. Cam Rayner then kicks the goal of his life, Jack Payne comes up with a clutch tackle. Rhys Stanley gets a free kick and it hits the post, then the siren goes. WE ACTUALLY WON!!! HOLY **** WE ACTUALLY WON!!! I was in disbelief, while I knew that this win would have meant nothing if we didn't win the following week, it felt like the curse was broken, it felt like over two decades of hurt supporting this club was undone in that instant. I'd never had and probably never will experience an emotional roller coaster like I did in the past half-hour, I was about to cry tears of sadness, but I ended up crying tears of happiness. I don't think I'll ever go to a better game than that!
Thankfully we go onto do the business against the Swans the following weekend and I got to see the one thing I've been wanting to see in my adult life more than any other, and last Saturday I got to see it again. We are now back-to-back premiers. The emotional rollercoaster of supporting the club through the really bad times, whether that be not making finals and only getting joy from narrowly avoiding the spoon, or making finals but constantly choking, has made me realise never to take this golden run for granted. We may win more premierships in the next few years, we may not. No one can predict the future. But whatever happens I will never take this for granted. It's all the ups and downs over the decades of supporting this club that has made these back-to-back flags so sweet.
