IT HAS been longer coming than he had hoped, but one of the most decorated players in Werribee’s history will finally join a select group when he plays his 100th VFL game in tomorrow’s qualifying final against Box Hill Hawks.
Not that it is anywhere near the top of Matt Hanson’s focus list.
The star midfielder is the only man to win four Bruce Montgomery Trophies for the Werribee best-and-fairest, plus four VFL Team of the Year selections.
Not bad considering he has only played four completed seasons due to a variety of serious injuries hampering his progress.
While Hanson feels privileged to play 100 games for Werribee after arriving from South Launceston nine years ago, his focus is solely on breaking what is now a 30-year drought since the Tigers’ one and only VFA/VFL flag in 1993.
“It’s very much a privilege to be able to play for one club for nine years,” Hanson said.
“I remember walking into the club in 2015 like it was yesterday. It has been a great journey and hopefully we can finish it off this year on a good note.
“There’s a lot of excitement around the club. Mick (coach Michael Barlow) and the coaches have done a really good job to tone that down a little bit.
“You have been able to feel the excitement build over the last few months but the job is not done. It’s going to be a test but we’ve got the personnel to have a good crack at this finals series.”
Hanson played 53 games in his first three seasons at Avalon Airport Oval, but injury reared its head and it has taken six years to play the next 47.
Late last year he broke his hand, which required surgery. However, it didn’t take and he had to go under the knife again in February, ruling him out of the first two months of the season.
The hard-nosed midfielder returned with a brilliant 31 disposals in the stunning win over the Gold Coast Suns in Round 9 before damaging his AC joint the following week, requiring another operation and another eight-week break.
But since returning against North Melbourne in Round 19, Hanson again hasn’t missed a beat, averaging 27.2 possessions (10 contested), six marks and six clearances from five matches.
“Injuries are part of the game, you’ve got to accept they’re going to happen,” he said.
“But I’ve had a supportive bunch of boys behind me, good strength and conditioning staff and a good bunch of physios to help me get back on the track.
“It has been a challenge sitting on the sidelines. You’ve just got to support the boys as best you can and make sure you’re doing everything you can to get back out on the track as soon as you can.
“It’s been good to see them win and really gel. A lot of the boys, we’ve been there for five or 10 years so there’s an understanding there between us all, we know how each other plays and it has come together now.”
The finals journey starts against the Box Hill Hawks in tomorrow’s second qualifying final at Avalon Airport Oval.
“We haven’t played them this year and there might be a few little subtle changes with their team given the VFL finals rules,” Hanson said.
“We’re not going to go in too confident, we’re going to try to play the way we want to play and if that’s good enough to win, away we go.”
Hanson said he proud to win four best-and-fairests, especially given the quality of players he has played alongside in Tom Gribble, Michael Sodomaco, Dom Brew, Kye Declase, Shaun Mannagh and Jack Henderson to name just a few.
“It’s enjoyable playing with all those guys. We’ve got continuity with each other, we know how each other plays, we like to bounce off each other and make each other better players, which is great,” he said.
“We were probably a bit unlucky back in 2019 to miss out in the semi final by less than a goal (against Essendon). That hit home hard and we were all keen to stay on board and try to get that bit of silverware at the end of the year.
“We’re all getting a bit older now so it is coming to crunch time, but the relationship we’ve all built over the past five to 10 years is really strong and hopefully we can create something special this year.”
