CASEY Demons skipper Mitch White could be forgiven for basking in the glory of his dominant Norm Goss Medal win as he led his team to a drought-breaking Smithy’s VFL premiership victory over Southport at IKON Park on Sunday.
White had 24 kicks, five handballs, three marks, eight clearances and 13 tackles while holding Southport co-captain Jacob Dawson to his second lowest tally of the season of 19.
The performance saw White unanimously crowned the best player on the ground as he finally won a VFL flag at his third attempt after the heartbreak of the losing the 2016 and 2018 deciders.
But after the game, his mind was fairly and squarely on his vice-captain and best mate Jimmy “Moose” Munro.
“They say you have to lose one to win but I would quite happily have won all three,” White said.
“But the hours we’ve put in have been long and hard, so it just means so much more.
“Moose and I spend time in the car, we go to games together and we always talk about how good this feeling would be, and it is every bit as good and more.
“To see how much it means to him, to see him so emotional. I love playing with him, it’s just so great to be on this side of it.
“It (the Norm Goss Medal) surprised me to be honest. You could have given it to Moose most weeks just on heart and you probably could have given it to him today. He had 20 tackles or something which doesn’t surprise me.
On his own part, Munro was shedding tears of joy and relief after the game.
“Ten years in the system, I’ve dreamed of this moment and to live it out with my family and friends and teammates is just unbelievable,” he said.
“I feel for the Southport boys. It’s a hard pill to swallow, but to stick at it and the years Whitey and I have done after the heartbreak is just unbelievable.
“(The conditions) slowed the young kids down a bit more and allowed me to tackle them, which is what I do best, so I’m rapt.
White said he had all week to prepare for the daunting job on Dawson, who averaged almost 30 disposals per game to finish a joint runner-up in the J.J. Liston Trophy and won the inaugural rebel VFL Coaches Player of the Year award.
“I had a role on Rhys Mathieson last week and I’m pretty comfortable doing that,” White said.
“Taylor Wickford, our mids coach, said to me early in the week I was going to go to him. He gave me a clear outline of what I needed to do, so I had that time to really get my head around it.
“Dawson is a star, I knew I had a big job, so I was pretty proud of myself to get that done. Medal or not, I was just happy to play my role.
White’s favourite moment of the Grand Final was being able to play provider for Munro’s third-quarter goal that gave the Demons the impetus they needed to go on with the job.
“I’d back Moose every day of the week and I couldn’t be prouder giving him that goal, it’s gets everyone up once the Moose ears come out and it was just grouse to get it done,” White said.
Off the field, Casey Demons general manager Garry O’Sullivan was also delighted and relieved to finally drink from a premiership cup after three previous Grand Final heartbreaks.
O’Sullivan was with the Northern Bullants when they fell short against North Ballarat in 2009 and 2010 and his first year at Casey Fields saw the shock 2018 Grand Final loss to Box Hill Hawks.
“It’s amazing. I’ve had a few ups and downs over the years, but today makes up for all of that,” O’Sullivan said.
“I’m so happy for the boys and for Corra. They’ve just been magnificent all year and at the end we deserved the flag, so it was reward for a great effort.
Another Casey stalwart you couldn’t wipe a smile off was Greg “Keg” Pendlebury, who had a remarkable start to his time working at VFA/VFL clubs in the 1980s and 1990s before enduring the Scorpions/Demons’ 23-year flag drought.
Pendlebury started at Oakleigh but when the club folded at the end of 1994, he ventured to Springvale, where the Scorpions promptly won flags in 1995, 1996, 1998 and 1999, but that was his last joy until Sunday.
But he never stopped turning up and putting in for his beloved club, and last week was one of the proudest of his life when he was awarded VFL Life Membership at the VFL and VFLW Awards, before the Demons finally broke their flag drought.
“It’s been a lifelong dream to win another premiership. We had the two little mishaps in ‘16 and ‘18 but it’s all complete now so it’s been a great week,” Pendlebury said.
Twitter: @BRhodesVFL