As Hawthorn snatched the lead in a pulsating final three minutes of a preliminary final for the ages, Oscar Allen accepted his brave move across the country 12 months earlier had fallen a week short of his dream.
Interchange rotations had reduced the powerful forward to a late-game spectator, removed from the frantic action and unable to influence the outcome from the sidelines as a trickle of blood rolled down his cheek from a gash beside his left eye.
โI was on the bench at the end, and probably during the last couple of minutes when we went down, I was thinking about everything,โ he told this masthead.
โI was thinking about things we could have done better, things I could have done better. I was thinking about the (coming) off-season, you know, your head goes everywhere.
โAnd then, yeah, you flip to next week.โ
The flip to next week will go down in footy folklore โ a holding-the-ball decision paid against Hawthorn defender Jarman Impey in the final minute that allowed Hugh McCluggage to kick the match-winning goal.
The decisive moment sent the baying Hawthorn crowd into meltdown and the umpires were loudly, and unfairly, booed as they left the ground.
But there was no such angst in the raucous Lions rooms after the match. There was sheer joy and relief. They had been to grand final in the previous three years, but this one felt harder fought, harder earned.
Spent-looking skipper Harris Andrews labelled the breathtaking aftermath a โseriousโ emotional high, beaming teammate Jarrod Berry kept saying โcrazyโ about his best mate McCluggageโs ability to kick two late clutch goals, while Conor McKenna said he felt grateful after a โwild last two minutesโ to be back in a grand final.
The Irishman also acknowledged his part in a match filled with exhilarating highs, a skilful two-touch soccer goal while dancing through congestion.โI play a bit of soccer, so it is something I can do,โ he smiled.
For Allen, there were no such highs. He played a bit-part to the dynamic Kai Lohmannโs five-goal heroics, or watched in awe as Charlie Cameron did Charlie Cameron things.
Not that the 27-year-old blond forward minded. He said it was simply great to be a part of something special.
Nor did he feel a sense of vindication for handing in the Eagles captaincy last year, amid ongoing media speculation, and departing his native Western Australia for Brisbane.
Instead, he said, the move had provided its own rewards.
โEven without the on-field team success, like the way they made me feel welcome in this group โ not only me, but my wife and my family โ you can see why theyโve been so successful,โ Allen said.
โItโs such a great culture and great people. Footy aside, Iโd do that 100 times over again.โ
While Andrews, Berry and McKenna have been to the final week of the season on multiple occasions before, the experience is not entirely unique to Allen.
โIn my first year, in 2018, I was playing at West Coast when they won the flag. I was an emergency,โ he said.
โSo I went through the parade, going to Melbourne and all that. But to now be a part of it as a playing player is something Iโm really looking forward to. โ
Brisbaneโs hunger has often been questioned this season, as commentators debated whether the Lions could repeat the feat of Leigh Matthewsโ dynasty at the start of the century and chalk up a three-peat.
Allen and ruckman recruit Scott Draper have helped refuel the desire for success, according to Berry.
โYou can see how much it means to those boys,โ he said. โAt the end of the game, I think Drapes had tears in his eyes.
โBut there are also those guys who arenโt playing at the moment, you just want to do it for them โ the hard luck stories.โ
No one should question the Lionsโ appetite for victory this week, according to their skipper. It was on show during their third-quarter against the Hawks, reeling in a 14-point half-time deficit to take a 20-point lead into the final term.
โWe saw in that third quarter how much we wanted it,โ Andrews said. โWeโre able to play โ I donโt know what the score was in third โ but play the right way and get the result on the scoreboard.
โAnd then, in the end, we had to fight our way out of it. And we did.โ
So, now, it is over to Fremantle. A side that has made one grand final in its history and never won a flag.
They have the hunger, no doubt. But do they have the nerve against a hardened Lions outfit that can practically navigate grand final week in their sleep?
โThereโs no advantages in this game, mateโ Andrews said. โEveryone wants it just as much as each other.
โFremantle have had an unbelievable season. Theyโre an incredible footy team. You know, theyโve had to do it the tough way as well in regards to playing all four weeks. So, itโs a great match-up
โSo, we canโt wait to get back down here (to Melbourne). With grand final week, as much as you try and play it off as if itโs something like a normal week, itโs not. Itโs different.
โYou have just got to embrace it and have a smile on your face. You donโt work so hard in your career and your life to get to this position to play in a grand final and not enjoy it.โ
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