A long-awaited premiership for Millicent was enough for veteran Steve Duldig to keep going
He has chalked up more than 300 games in two decades for Millicent but when the club broke a 34-year drought to win the Western Border Football League Steve Duldig was convinced he should keep going.
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IT was the year of the Saints — but the breaking of a 34-year premiership drought did not convince one of the club’s most loyal servants it was the moment to call time on his career.
The celebrations lasted at least a week for Steve Duldig, then 39, who has played for Millicent for more than two decades and chalked up more than 300 games.
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It would have been a fitting finale for Duldig — he had in two stints served as the club’s coach and was reunited with brother and former SANFL forward Matt in the 2018 breakthrough premiership.
But Duldig, one of the most honest and passionate country footballers you’ll ever come across, will keep going.
“It was a bit of a fairytale,” Duldig said. “Drought-breaking, and people who had put a lot of work into the club got a bit of success, which was nice.
“I’m probably showing my age now; I was 16 when I played my first game and had a little break when I was in Adelaide but have pretty much played ever since.
“I considered it (retirement) but I’m going again. Probably one more, to follow up.
“We’ve got some new players coming back from Adelaide and I think we’ll be around the mark again.”
The best part of the Millicent premiership is that it did not come about through a big buy-up.
“It was nice to do it with the majority of players being locals,” Duldig said.
Duldig was taken aback by the how much the premiership meant to the township.
The club’s netball side, in which his wife plays, has had regular success over the years but the drought of the football side meant they were long celebrations.
“It did lift the town,” Duldig said. “Because we’d had such a long time without success.
“The atmosphere at the club — I had never seen anything like it at a country footy club.
“It was just so good to see some of the old ex-players who had stuck around and volunteered and helped out behind the scenes.
“They didn’t have the playing success but to be able to be involved, that was probably as good as anything.
“We were a bit down and out a few seasons before; I think we won about one game in three seasons and that was a tough slog. But credit to everyone that stuck around.”
Matt, who played with Glenelg and Sturt in the SANFL, was at the opposite end of the ground to Steve in the club’s premiership moment — he was at full-forward while Steve firmed up the backline.
He remains equally excited about the year and what it meant for the club and its long-serving supporters.
“The best thing was that it was built around locals,” Matt said.
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