By Justin Flynn
Belmont Lions’ fairytale run to its first Geelong & District Football League premiership in 17 years has one more hurdle – Thomson.
The two teams meet in tomorrow’s decider at St Albans Reserve with the Lions finishing second on the ladder after winning just six games last season to finish ninth.
The improvement, according to captain Jak Evans, has come from within.
“We could see the improvement internally, but we weren’t getting the results and this year we’ve seen the improvement and then being able to back it up with wins like we’ve done and then playing in the granny this week shows the work that they’ve done behind the scenes,” he said.
Evans said co-coaches Brent Vermeulen and Andy Walsgott, and assistant coaches Matt Waters and Kane Murphy, had poured a power of work behind the scenes to get the side ready for a premiership.
“I think the amount of work that goes into coaching a community footy side is just crazy,” he said.
“So what they’ve done, I think it’s good they both sort of come from different paths. Andy’s been able to bring a few, Brent’s been able to bring a few and then Murph and Matty Waters, the other assistant coaches, have all brought a few.”
Evans gets to play in a grand final with his brothers Ben and Jed and said the Lions were an even side all-round.
“I think we’re just pretty even across the board,” he said.
“Our forward line, our backs, our mids – everyone says we don’t have any superstars, but we just sort of bat pretty deeply in the 22 and just the depth I reckon it’s probably our biggest strength.”
The two sides have not played each other since round 4 with the Lions winning by 10 goals.
“We’re looking forward to it – it’ll be a super tough battle on Saturday,” Evans said.
Thomson finished the home and away season in fourth spot and has been playing in elimination finals for more than a month.
It’s something that co-captain Sam Jacka said has made his side battle hardened.
“You can get a little bit lost in thinking about what’s coming and thinking about trying to get that week off and setting yourself up for that run, but it’s probably even further than that,” he said.
“Like the last three or four weeks of the home and away season, we were still fighting for finals and I think we were only a goal or two up against Corio going into that second last round. And it wasn’t a guarantee that we were going to run over the top of them and if we had lost that game, there was a chance that we miss out on the final five, so it has helped.
“I mean, it’s pretty easy to just focus on what’s ahead and that one week at a time kind of motto, but it certainly helps. I mean we fight and we fight and we fight and we’ve got some good grit in our group and it’s probably made our group a lot stronger.”
Jacka said the disappointment of losing last year’s grand final by 10 goals to Inverleigh was still fresh in the mind. Thomson’s Jahd Anderson was knocked out in the opening seconds of the game, which unsettled the team.
“Last year still stings a lot, I’m pretty close with Jahd…that situation, but we never really got our heads in the game and unfortunately (we were) probably overawed by the situation,” he said.
“So we probably took a little bit out of that in terms of just the physicality that is required to not just win prelims and semis and qualifying finals, but then that next step up for grand finals. So I think everyone’s had their taste of it last year and they’re ready to go this year.”
Jacka said the loss to Werribee Centrals in the final round was disappointing, but was turned into a positive by coach Paul Lynch.
“When we got a bit of touch-up in the last round of the year against Werribee…he said, ‘I’m not really worried about this. I’ve been there before. We’ve come from fifth at Colac, and we got belted by 12 or 13 goals in that last game of the year and came out and won it’,” Jacka said.
The game, at St Albans Reserve, on Saturday September 13 starts at 2.15pm. Werribee Centrals and East Geelong clash in the reserves at 11.45am.
