WRFL 2019: Deer Park claims a record seventh Division 1 flag in a row
Indomitable Deer Park has won a seventh consecutive WRFL Division 1 premiership, defeating Altona by three points in a gripping decider, and continuing to rewrite the record books.
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Deer Park coach Marc Bullen had no hesitation in declaring this the club’s greatest premiership.
The Lions had to overcome several hurdles just to advance to the WRFL Division 1 grand final, most notably the distraction of a salary cap investigation and a large injury list.
But Deer Park again saved its best for September, conquering red-hot favourite Altona by three points at Werribee’s Avalon Airport Oval on Saturday to secure a remarkable seventh consecutive flag.
No other club in metropolitan Melbourne has achieved that feat in a top-flight competition.
Say what you want — and supporters from opposition clubs have plenty to say — but this is a special club.
Altona defeated the Lions twice during the regular season and also won the major semi-final.
The Vikings finished three games clear on top of the ladder and limited Deer Park to 33 goals in four meetings in 2019.
But somehow another flag is now housed at John McLeod Oval.
It was an eventful, gripping and dramatic decider.
Deer Park was two men down — Chris Stewart and Daniel Cooper were sent off — for most of the third quarter and left staring at a 19-point deficit at the final change.
Altona had the breeze in the final half-hour, with the Lions’ task made all the more difficult when Jack Redpath was given his marching orders with about 20 minutes remaining.
But, incredibly, Deer Park nailed the only three goals of a tense final quarter to prevail by three points, 9.13 (67) to 9.10 (64).
“The sporting public allow you to be a good side, but they don’t allow you to be a great side,” Bullen said.
“Today we proved that we are.
“Seven in a row in unbelievable and this is certainly the best one of the lot.”
Former Essendon player Bullen is a seven-time premiership coach, while champions Kwame McHarg and Stewart are seven-time premiership players.
Bullen described the triumph as “absolutely amazing”.
At the three-quarter-time huddle, he threw a simple question to his players — what if?
The message was to take risks — there were few other options — and it worked to perfection.
In contrast, Bullen said the Vikings went into “protection mode”.
“Just have a crack, put our guns around the ball, have a massive emphasis on getting the footy out of the middle,” Bullen said of his speech.
“I put a lot of space between the centre bounce and the full-forward line. I just encouraged them to run, take the game on, and you just never know.”
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There were heroes everywhere for the all-conquering Lions.
Midfielder Jeremy Mills was awarded the medal for best afield and had an enormous impact in the forward half in the last term.
The experience of Shannon Byrnes proved crucial, captain Jack Purton-Smith racked up telling possessions at will, while usual defender Jackson Barling shifted to centre half-forward in the second half and was influential.
It was Purton-Smith’s second game since mid-July, while Barling entered the match with a hamstring tear.
Tim Knight was another noteworthy performer, while Stewart and McHarg did what they have always done on the big stage since 2013.
“The guts, determination and effort of the boys was just unbelievable,” Bullen said.
“It was a game we shouldn’t have won, but we did.
“It was just a true testament to the boys and their fight and their effort.
Old Xaverians (1995-2000) dominated the VAFA’s top competition for six years, but Deer Park now stands alone.
The Lions have won three grand finals by three points or less since 2013 and also handed out several beltings.
While the home-and-away season was the closest in recent memory, they remain the kings of the WRFL.
“It’s an outstanding effort,” Bullen said.
“We don’t speak too much about eras and stuff like that, but we put a plan in place to be successful and everyone that wasn’t wearing blue and yellow today wanted us to lose.
“We played with 16 players in the third quarter for about 20 minutes and we just had grit, determination and effort and we won the game.
“We haven’t been able to run games out. They were fresh, we were battered, and true credit to the guys.”
Rival clubs are now left to continue to address the nagging question over pre-season — how do you beat Deer Park in September?
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