AFL Grand Final: Bucket list item crossed off or ending in tears?

 

 

At 5pm on Saturday I will either be hugging my young boys high up in the Ponsford Stand as the Swans salute, in a truly bucket list moment I’ve craved since they were born OR I’ll be shattered and wiping away tears at an opportunity lost. There is no in-between on Grand Final Day.

 

Whilst a card carrying pessimist by nature, I’ve decided to embrace the week. On Monday I took my boys Jack (10) and Harry (8) to do a tour of the mighty MCG – in an effort to try and instill the significance and history of the week that lies ahead.

 

There is something so magical about strolling around the ‘G’ when there is no one to be seen bar your little tour group and the experienced MCC coated guide. As we make our way to the surface, I can’t help but smile as the boys, and then Dad, sneak their feet under the chain lock keeping you cruelly separated from the magical turf, just so we can put our weary sneakers on the superbly manicured turf that the chosen few will grace on Saturday.

 

We make our way to the change rooms – the boys are flat that we will be visiting the Geelong rooms (as they are still done up from last week). We beg our MCC-coated new friend for a quick glimpse inside Swans HQ and scurry in for a quick photo. Then it’s onto the race – gee its steep! I hope those 35-year-old calfs of Buddy’s don’t tighten up before he hits the deck. We take photos and dream.

 

The photos taken will either one day end up on a mantelpiece or they will be confined to the scrapheap. There will be no recycling of that photo on the race at Jack’s 21st if we get done by the Cats. Immediately the photos value and legacy is defined by the result.

 

It is just the way things are with Grand Finals – even for a humble little supporter.

 

Coming from Wagga Wagga, it was the Swans for me from the moment Paul Kelly started busting through packs and demonstrating through sheer will and determination that you can be one of the toughest players in the AFL and weigh only 75kgs. Moving to Melbourne 20 years ago, I’ve carried the love of the Swannies and, to be fair, the boys were not really given a choice. I’m a reasonable fair-minded person I think, however, I was a Dictator when it came to the kids and footy.

 

‘Boys, Dad goes for the Swans and we watch, barrack for and attend Swans games. If you want to get into footy then jump on board’. Thankfully the little Cygnets have embraced the directive.

 

My selfishness was centred around the family sharing a passion together and to try and create the opportunity that presents itself on Saturday. All four of us wouldn’t be celebrating a possible flag together if I’d let Jack explore that brief dalliance he had with the Western Bulldogs when we lived in Seddon and his Auskick centre was pushing Bob Murphy down his throat.

 

Strolling out of the ‘G’, we pause for a quick kick on the grass near the concourse – it is physically impossible to restrain yourself from having a kick in the vicinity of the ‘G’, if you have a Sherrin handy.

 

Out of the corner of my eye I see someone. I think I know who it is but I can’t quite be sure? I take a few cautious steps.

 

Yep, that’s him…. CAPPER!! The Wizard is in town.

 

The day takes a surprising and entertaining turn. I approach the man who once set the SCG alight and who every footy-loving school kid at Tolland Primary School in 1986 tried to emulate in our kick-to-kick sessions. I loved to cry out “CAPPER” as I attempted to fly the pack, fully aware that I couldn’t leap over a jam tin.

 

I am greeted by a warm handshake and a face and body that has seen some living. The Wizard is as high energy as I suspected. Words fly by at pace. To be honest, the boys are not sure what to make of the Wizard and his passion for self-promotion. I just give a gentle wink of reassurance and the boys are at ease. It is all energy high fives, hugs and laughs. What you see is what you get.

 

We end up being interviewed by Capper for ‘Street Talk’ on the Marngrook Footy Show – a great show still on our screens via community TV in Melbourne. We ham up some answers and have a great time.

 

I have a brief chat to Capper about the late, great Merv Neagle – a former club football coach of mine at the Mangoplah Cookardinia United Goannas and a teammate of Capper when the Swans were flying. For a brief moment the showman front is gone as I see a genuine sadness in his eyes as we discuss the sad passing of Merv, well before his time.

 

In a flash the Wizzard is then gone. I’ve genuinely enjoyed my interaction and hope that some of that energy and excitement can rub off on me. I’ve never forgotten that Capper could seriously play the game – you don’t kick close to 200 goals across two seasons unless you are a legitimate star. I also saw first-hand what his impact was on kids in the 80s in NSW.

 

The train trip on the Eltham line sees the Dodson tribe viewing Capper highlights from Youtube. We then go for a quick kick and my boys are suddenly screaming “CAPPER” every time they take a mark. It is 1987 all over again.

 

We will do it all this week. The Parade. The kids activities at the ‘G’. Watch about 486 hours of TV analysis. Hell, I even went and brought the AFL Record on the Monday! – In fairness it will take me 4 days to find the answers on the ‘spot the difference’ kids activity page.

 

I want to embrace and enjoy the week for the kids as much as possible as I just don’t know how the cards will fall on Saturday. If it ends in tears then let’s at least have some fun prior.

 

The Cats look strong (the Pessimist says too strong). One thing I know about the Swans is the effort will be there. We will TURN UP and give it everything. Are we too young? Perhaps. That being said, youth is brash and doesn’t carry the burden of past failure. Perhaps it is our time? An exhilarating Grand Final awaits.

 

To be at a Grand Final, watching your team with your family, is not to be taken for granted. Opportunity awaits. Come Saturday evening will the Bic Biro put the sweetest of lines through this Bucket List item OR will it remain a dream with the next opportunity uncertain to come again?

 

The Stakes are HIGH. Cheer, Cheer the Red and the White.

 

 

Photo by Craig Dodson

 

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