OK class, hands up who had Glenorden missing the finals at the start of the Western Region Football League division 2 season?
Is that a hand I see sheepishly going up from within the inner sanctum?
Glenorden, which endured a mass exodus of premiership stars in the off season, has defied gloomy pre-season predictions to reach the finals, albeit after a shaky past month.
The Hawks secured their place in the final four with a determined 14-point win over West Footscray at Heathdale Oval on Saturday.
Hawks football manager Dean Comensoli said his club had stepped into the unknown this season after losing a chunk of top-end players who took the club to the flag last season.
“At the start of the year a lot of people thought we were going to struggle a bit,” he said.
“We weren’t really sure ourselves until we got them out there. We’re extremely happy that we’ve blooded some really good kids this year. Most of the side is kids and they’ve done really well; they’ve excelled.”
Coach Stuart Daly always believed this young side could achieve special things.
Taking over from Nick Diker, the coach implored a number of homegrown youngsters to step into bigger roles.
Beau Bostock was a player who had every right to feel aggrieved with the club.
He played all bar one of his games in the senior side last year – and was even named among the best in the semi-final – only to be dropped for the grand final.
He stayed loyal to the club – perhaps on the back of Daly’s promotion to senior coach – and is playing a key role in its title defence.
“He’s had a great season,” Comensoli said. “It’s a credit to him to come back after being dropped for a grand final.”
Daly gets all the credit for dragging the Hawks back to the finals. He promoted from within and empowered youngsters to write their own chapter in the club’s history.
“He’s been inspirational at this club,” Comensoli said. “With the amount of players we were losing, it was all doom and gloom. But I never heard one negative word come from his mouth about where we were going and what we were doing.
“He never ever doubted the kids would play finals footy … he said that from the start of the season and stuck to his word and got them there.”
In division 1, Hoppers Crossing was the last side to qualify for the finals, thrashing cellar dweller Yarraville Seddon by 67 points on the road at the Yarraville Oval.
