We were all disappointed with the early part of the season and for the most part there were calls for the coach to be sacked.
Yes, it was certainly not rosy and our play smacked of Z grade footy at times and then of course there were the inevitable complaints about team selection.
What happened to the team for the last third of the season??
We actually developed self belief and the players pulled together as a group to put their bodies on the line for each other and start to gel into something more like a competitive footy team. They played for themselves, the coach, the club and most certainly for the fans.
They looked like they were enjoying the game again and we saw some really entertaining attacking play and some really brutal defence where at times they defended as if there was no tomorrow.
We finally got to see Nick Meaney in the clear; Jacko hitting like a hammer and running those great angles that he did years ago; chain passing instead of one out hit ups; Elliot running hard and straight ; RFM getting a go and not letting us down, Foran staying healthy, offering so much on field plus so many more positive things...
I stuck by the team even in those dim times, travelled my kilometres feeling that maybe this week we would have a win...some pretty quiet times on the trips home , the jibes of supporters of other teams who were travelling far better than we were ringing in my ears....but then wow the last 6 or so weeks have been a breath of fresh air, a revelation indeed and the enjoyment slowly crept back into the watching of the team, seeing them develop and grow.
Good on you fellas....if a couple of those narrow losses had gone the other way we could have been playing semis even with the bad year we had. One loss outside the top eight; an admirable outcome considering our poor early form and leaking of points....
I have a better feeling for our chances next year;we may or may not make the semis, who knows; but at least some of the young blokes who were thrown into the deep end this year will be one year wiser, more experienced and with a better understanding of how to win consistently.
I know that there is life in the old dog yet...