Tara Murray
Sunshine broke through for its first Western Football League senior premiership on Saturday, capping off one of the best days in the club’s history.
The club had only won three senior premierships entering Saturday’s division 2 decider against Albion.
All three came while the side was part of the YCW National Football Association, with their only A-grade premiership which came in 1976, their most recent premiership.
Saturday would become a day the Kangaroos would remember for years to come.
It started with the under-18s winning the division 2 premiership, followed by their reserves getting it done as well.
The seniors then had a big test ahead of them.
Facing longtime rival Albion, the Kangaroos had their work cut out for them.
The Cats were undefeated and had beaten the Kangaroos three times during the year.
It meant little on Saturday.
The Kangaroos led all day on the way to an 8.8 (56)-6.13 (49) win.
Kangaroos coach Guy Barbuto said they believed that they could get the job done.
“The process that we had and we stuck to it,” he said. “We knew they were gettable on their day and we got them.
“We backed our game style in wet, dry or whatever it was. That is what we did. We got to work, we knew they were hard at the contest and we needed to match them and I think we beat them at it.
“That is what nullified them from scoring.”
It was a case of four seasons on Saturday at Pennell Reserve, making the game a hard one to control.
There was a strong wind to one end for most of the day. There were periods of hail and then the sun came out and it was still.
The Kangaroos had the wind in the first quarter but weren’t fully able to make the most of it. The Cats then were the same in the second quarter.
It took until the third quarter for the game to open up.
“It was a tail of two halves,” Barburto said. “The game didn’t really open up to the second half and we were happy with that.
“We knew Albion hadn’t been down at any exchange throughout the year. To go in up at quarter time, half time and three quarter time the pressure would build on them.
“That’s what happened.”
Barbuto said they were wary midway through the third quarter when they had gotten out to a 34 point lead.
That was the point where the semi final changed between the two teams that the Kangaroos took their foot off the pedal. leading to the Cats win.
The Kangaroos had the same lapse again, but this time they’d given themselves a big enough lead to hold on.
While many of the crowd were shocked when the siren went, Barbuto said they knew that the siren wasn’t far off when it came.
Barbuto said the biggest thing in the win was everyone just playing their role.
Nathan Carroll and Declan Moloney kicked two goals each.
Mark Mazzeo, Carroll, Matthew Cravino and Patrick O’Keefe were named their best.
It was the skipper, O’Keefe, who was awarded the Rex Swann Medal, as the player judged best on ground by the umpires.
O’Keefe has come through the system at the Kangaroos.
“He’s had a marvellous year,” Babruto said of the skipper. ”He was super again.
“I think he came off with two blood rules, he was sore and put his body on the line and that’s what leaders do at this stage.”
Barbuto said to have all three teams win premierships on the same day. The club’s third senior side fell agonisingly short of premiership success a couple of weeks, losing by one point.
“It’s a huge day for the club,” Barbuto said. “The work that Chappy [former coach Ben Chapman] did doesn’t go unnoticed as well.
“Everyone that was involved, this has been a long time coming for Sunshine. You’ve got guys like Michael O’Keefe, Mark Grech, Chris Gatt, Nathan Wilson who haven’t played in a flag.
“As a player I was fortunate to see some success, I’m rapt to see another club have theirs. It’s going to be a big celebration with all three sides winning it.
“It could go for a week or two I think.”
