Devil’s dilemma for the rest of us
MANY of us find ourselves today on the horns of a dilemma.
Not for Geelong’s substantial number of Collingwood supporters — but for everyone else.
To wish for an outcome where interstate raiders fly the cup of the competition we used to call VFL back to the west coast seems somehow disloyal.
But to non-Collingwood supporters, the prospect of barracking for the Magpies is almost equally unpalatable.
This has been a footy season that revealed some uncomfortable truths about the Cats.
But parochial interest aside, it has been — as has been the pattern for the past few years — a pretty good season of football with plenty of remarkable stories.
If Collingwood triumphs today, it won’t quite be the drought-breaking story that Richmond’s victory was last year or the Bulldogs of the year before. For Collingwood, that was 1990 — its first flag since 1958.
A Collingwood win would feel more like a once-a-decade cycle for the powerhouse club that has not bottomed out in a long time.
But there are a few sentimental factors that might make even the most Colli-phobic of us put a peg on our nose and quietly barrack for the Victorian club.
First, there is the courage of former Cat Travis Varcoe in the wake of his sister’s death from an on-field footy head injury.
Then there is the sudden dominance of big Texan Mason Cox, who is so new to it all he doesn’t know our national anthem and whose footy career so far is less long than that of some little Auskickers.
And finally there is coach Nathan Buckley, who this year has stared down critics who said he should go, withstood a world of pressure, and shaped a team of contenders.
We’re not saying any of this is enough for Colli-phobes to suddenly barrack for the black and white, but it doesn’t hurt.
May the best team win and good luck to our four local cover stars.