By Lance Jenkinson
Deer Park players are not getting too caught up in the historical aspects linked to this year’s Western Region Football League division 1 grand final.
The Lions will become the first top-flight non-amateur team in AFL Victoria metropolitan football history to achieve a sixth consecutive flag if they can beat Hoppers Crossing in the decider at Avalon Airport Oval on Saturday.
The players are aware of the significance of victory and do not hide from the fact that it has been brought up during the season, but they know if they look too far beyond the first bounce of this Saturday’s season decider, there is a risk their gazing at a potential sixth straight premiership cup might lead them to be being stranded on five.
“It’s obviously in the back of our minds, but we just want to get the win,” Deer Park captain Jack Purton-Smith said.
“That’s all that matters and we’ll worry about that after and then if we win, we can sit back and go ‘wow, what an achievement’.
“For now, the win is all that we want.”
If Deer Park is to win on Saturday, it will always be linked to the record run of premierships between 2013 and 2017.
The only players to have featured in all five grand finals were Kwame McHarg and Chris Stewart, while Marc Bullen has either been coach or player coach.
Purton-Smith said the hunger remained because of the players who have not even been a part of one, adding that each premiership was unique with its own set of challenges.
“There’s been a little bit of talk [of a potential sixth in a row], but I think the main thing is we’ve got a lot of hungry players at the club who are yet to win one as well,” he said.
Purton-Smith cherishes every chance he gets to play in a grand final.
The skipper missed out on the 2016 grand final after he was injured in the warm-up.
He was under a cloud entering the 2018 finals series with a hamstring injury, but got through the semi-final unscathed and should be raring to go on Saturday.
“I’ve been doing a lot of work to get it right,” he said.
“I’m feeling better, I’m better for the run.
“I can’t wait.”
Deer Park ruckman Scott Greenhough believes there is no added pressure on his team to keep the streak alive.
He said the emotions of the players will be no different to their opponents.
“I think a lot of guys just want to play well on that day, not necessarily thinking we need to win the flag,” he said.
“We all want to play well to win together.
“The pressure just comes with it and you kind of take it in your stride.”
Greenhough, who forms the best ruck tandem in the competition with Stewart, is not even going back two weeks to Deer Park’s huge semi-final win over Altona for inspiration, let alone thinking about 2013 or any of the other premierships in between.
“We’re confident in our own game, but I don’t know if [beating Altona in the semi-final] separates us heaps from the competition because it’s much tighter this year, which has been good,” he said.
There is no escaping that grand final fever has hit Deer Park though.
“This time of the year is always good to be playing,” Greenhough said.
“Finals is what you play footy for.”
