ALL THE WASH-UP FROM MODDA’S GRAND FINAL WIN
JOHN Meesen knew it. And Josh Finch always believed.
But they each had that nagging thought about whether the rest of the Modewarre team would come along for the ride.
Those questions were answered on Saturday. Emphatically.
Amid the euphoria of a drought-breaking premiership — a thumping 47-point win over raging favourites Barwon Heads — Meesen declared it was “mission accomplished”.
“Yeah, it is,” said an elated Meesen, who returned to his home club in chase of an elusive flag.
“At times we thought we were the only ones who could see it. We knew there was something pretty special about this group.
“The boys were really honest with themselves about halfway through the year and we all bought in and gave it a good crack.
“We thought coming into this game that we’d done it re-
ally tough and overcame some obstacles and this was another really big challenge and the boys stepped up.”
The country club with a big heart had triumphed against all odds.
“It feels so surreal,” Finch said, standing alongside Meesen.
“Just looking around, the support around the group is unbelievable.
“It’s a childhood dream, something I’ve built up over 10 or so years, and getting towards the back end of my career it was something that my wife Emma and I talked about.
“It was probably something I wanted to put the furthest from my mind and release that pressure and just play for my mates and the friendships that you’ll create for a lifetime through footy.
“It’s a powerful thing that footy offers. As John said, we knew we had something special in the group. They’re so hard working.
“We come from a really small community and we have to stick to our strengths. When the going gets tough, the tough get going and we felt the
group would deliver today and they certainly did.”
Thrashed in the second semi-final, Modewarre turned the tables on Barwon Heads. And in a big way.
The Warriors hunted the opposition, pressuring their every move.
The Seagulls eventually coughed the ball up under the relentless heat from a determined Modewarre outfit.
It was a far cry from the match at Portarlington a fortnight ago.
“We just went away from playing our way,” Meesen said of the semi-final.
“We weren’t playing the Modda way. We were second to the footy, we didn’t tackle as hard as we wanted, we let them run all over the ground without any physical presence.
“So we just went back to the basics and drilled home why we’re good and what we’re good at and encouraged the boys that if you make a mistake that’s fine, but don’t die wondering.”
In some respects, this premiership arrived a year before its time.
The Warriors were seem-
ingly challenging for second against a Barwon Heads side that was richly deserving of a minor premiership. But Finch said he never lost faith, believing his charges were capable of taking all before them.
“The list was way more developed,” Finch stressed.
“When I first stepped into the coaching role in 2016 we did a list assessment and you’ve probably got 26 (senior) players. In 2017, we probably had 34.
“We played 40 guys in our senior team this year. Our twos were the best side all year as well and they fell short by a point, so we’ve got 40 guys who can play senior footy and hold their own and that’s why we delivered today (Saturday).”
Keen to bask in the glory for “at least a week”, Meesen declared the premiership was for the faithful.
“We run out there, but it’s a by-product of what the committee has done over the last six or seven years, what Finchy’s done for his whole career, what the people before us have done,” Meesen said.
“They laid the foundation, they did the hard yards. They set us up. We feel now that people want to come and play for Modda.
“You come, you play footy the right way. We’ve got great mateship, we’ve got a fantastic club, our football and netball club is all as one and our supporters and the community are all rolled in.
“We think we’re a desirable place, we’ve got good juniors coming through. We’ve got players coming to the end of their careers but when you’ve got something special you don’t want to give it away easily.”