Patrick Dangerfield was always leaving Adelaide, Crows fans can blame a place called ‘kracker’

WHEN Patrick Dangerfield stands proudly with a Brownlow Medal around his neck and the bittersweet feeling of “what if” kicks in for Crow fans, they should rest easy.

Patrick Dangerfield is the red-hot favourite to win the Brownlow Medal.

MONDAY night, when Patrick Dangerfield stands proudly and deservingly with a Brownlow Medal around his neck and the bittersweet feeling of watching it and wondering about the “what ifs” kicks in for Crow fans; they should rest easy.

It’s not their fault he left Adelaide. And it’s not their club’s fault that he left his old teammates one brilliant superstar short of a possible premiership this season.

If you want something to blame, blame it on a tiny, unknown, almost inaccessible place called Kracker.

A place that’s also largely responsible for his stunning season, his solo superman v Sydney performance on Friday night, and his Brownlow win.

Moggs Creek was once barely noticeable on a map. There are no shops in Moggs. Just a small stretch of bitumen then it’s dirt roads and beach shacks. But if you have seen a photo of the famous Pole House or the Great Ocean Road arch, or the dune house in the closing scene of the first Mad Max, you might know Moggs sits quietly in the middle of an amazing five kilometre stretch of beach many Melburnians rate as the pinnacle of the whole Victorian coast.

That five kilometre stretch of surfing, bike riding, horse riding, bush walking and peaceful holidaying paradise is famously dotted with quality surf breaks where you can literally park your car on the sand and paddle out.

Patrick Dangerfield surfs near his home in Moggs Creek. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

Spout Creek, Moggs, Eastern View, Fairhaven; surfers can take their pick, and it’s why some high rollers fly their choppers and drive their Maserati’s and Bentley’s down, and pay well over a thousand dollars a night for their beach front accommodation on the “Fairhaven Stretch” every January.

And Monday night, Dangerfield will make Moggs more famous than ever.

But what most don’t know is that down a hidden, snake inhabited, steep, treacherous path; at the bottom of the Devils Elbow cliff at the extreme western end of the Fairhaven stretch; sits a remote surf break accessed only by jumping off the rocky seaside outcrop.

The locals call it “Hunters”, but like the holiday-makers and tourists, they don’t surf there. It’s too tricky to get to. Only the Dangerfield’s surf there.

These days you can often see the black wetsuit clad Dangerfield clan out carving their way anonymously past the dolphins at first light, or late by almost nothing but moonlight.

The Dangerfield boys don’t call their break “Hunters”. They have always called it by their secret name of “Kracker”. And it’s their own piece of timeless, pressure less, football less paradise that stands the same now as it did before humans ever saw it.

Patrick Dangerfield with his AFL Players’ Association MVP trophy.

Adelaide never had a chance of keeping Patrick Dangerfield. The lure of home and Kracker, and the work-life-family balance that reflected in his stardom this season, was always going to win.

Those Adelaide Advertiser articles earlier this season, stating that the Crows were better off without him, were a laughable mix of forlorn hope, sour grapes and propaganda.

His absence remains the massive elephant in the room among Crow fans, and at Crow headquarters. Talk of recruiting a Dustin Martin or Tom Rockliff to fill his hole, has been loud this past week because if it.

But if there is any consolation for Crow fans it’s that Geelong failed to advance to this seasons grand final with him. And better still, the evidence would suggest that the Crows are far more likely to finish in the top four next season without Dangerfield, than the Cats are likely to, with Dangerfield.

The Cats were spanked at home by Sydney by far more than the Crows were beaten by in Sydney the previous weekend. The only Cat who put up any notable resistance to the Sydney onslaught in the opening quarter Friday night was Dangerfield, who again enhanced his reputation as being reliable under the most insurmountable and intense personal pressure.

The AFL Hall Of Fame bound Cats Jimmy Bartel and Corey Enright are considering retirement. The once reliable but fast slowing Andrew Mackie is not far behind them. And Steven Motlop, Tom Hawkins, Lincoln McCarthy, Lachie Henderson, Josh Cowan, Mark Blicavs and Rhys Stanley who all possess a tendency to go missing in games, went missing again on the big stage on Friday night.

So rejoice a little in Dangerfield’s Brownlow success. And take solace in the fact that the battle for a flag and the last laugh between his old club and his new club, may have just taken a turn in Adelaide’s favour.

Originally published as Patrick Dangerfield was always leaving Adelaide, Crows fans can blame a place called ‘kracker’