Queensland AFL Grand Final hero Ross Whyte granted final wish to visit Gabba

Ross Whyte lapped up his last visit to the Gabba, where he etched himself into Queensland AFL folklore 44 years ago. Check out the video of his famous moment.

A Queensland grand final hero has been granted his dying wish to visit the scene where he went from ruckman to QAFL legend on the hallowed Gabba turf.

Ross Whyte kicked the winning goal during the 1977 Queensland AFL Grand Final for his beloved Western Districts Club during the final frantic minutes of their 18.16 (124) to 17.17 (119) victory.

It was Whyte’s first ever grand final and came one day after he celebrated his 21st birthday, making it one of the most cherished memories of his life.

Forty-four years on and Whyte – who has terminal cancer – was able to reminisce on the spectacular goal when he was wheeled out on a stretcher to the Gabba boundary, just metres away from his grand final heroics.

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The final wish of former AFL grand final hero Ross Whyte was to visit the Gabba and it came true on Thursday morning. Photo: Annette Dew

“I wish I had a ball here so I could do it again,” Whyte said at the Gabba.

“It feels really good to be here.

“Throughout that ‘77 season, we were probably the best performing team and we went in to that game with a lot of confidence.

“I can’t remember the particular stats but the ball passed through so many hands in that final quarter.

Western Districts QAFL player Ross Whyte takes the mark before kicking the winning goal in the 1977 Grand Final against Wilston Grange.

“(Kicking that winning goal) was totally numbing.

“It was a cracker of a match and the pressure just released when we saw the ball go straight through the middle of the goal.

“That kick changed my experience of what it felt like to win a grand final and to also kick a winning goal.”

Western Districts QAFL player Ross Whyte about to kick the winning goal in the 1977 QAFL Grand Final against Wilston Grange

Whyte is battling terminal prostate cancer, which he was diagnosed with in 2017, and is under the care of St Vincent’s Hospital Brisbane palliative care team.

Ambulance Wish Queensland – a program of Palliative Care Queensland – was behind the initiative to grant Whyte his dying wish to visit the Gabba one final time on Thursday morning, surrounded by family, friends and current Lions players Oscar McInerney and Ryan Lester.

The final wish of former AFL grand final hero Ross Whyte at the Gabba. Photo: Annette Dew

“It’s every kids’ dream to kick a winning goal in a grand final,” McInerney said.

“He did it with ease.

“Bring a ruckman myself, I’ll be leaning on him for some tips.

“Ross is absolutely the pioneer and set the stones for us in this generation.”

Whyte now has spinal cord compression which has left him incapable of walking and could only return to the Gabba with Ambulance Wish Queensland.

Originally published as Queensland AFL Grand Final hero Ross Whyte granted final wish to visit Gabba