'Finally' theme song of the night
"FINALLY it has happened to me, right in front of my face, my feelings can't describe it ..." You know the song.
"FINALLY it has happened to me, right in front of my face, my feelings can't describe it ..." You know the song.
Now picture Gary Ablett standing on his table in the middle of Crown Palladium belting it out as Andrew Demetriou reads out his name as the winner of the 2009 Brownlow Medal.
It didn't happen but the Ce Ce Peniston classic summed up the mood, not only for Gazza, but for everyone at last night's count. If ever anyone deserved to have Charlie hanging around his head, it was the Geelong champion. Finally.
When the moment came after another best-on-ground performance against Sydney in Round 20, host Sandy Roberts threw down to Ablett who couldn't believe he'd actually done it.
"Thanks mate," he managed to get out before suggesting they continue with the count because "I can't add up too well."
Given what he'd been through the previous two years, he still wasn't prepared to concede the Brownlow was his until all the votes had been read out.
A couple of minutes later and with four more votes added to his name, Ablett had won the game's highest honour by the length of the Flemington straight.
Still there was no outpouring of emotion. His girlfriend Lauren Phillips had a vice-like grip on his hand and when he arrived on stage to get Charlie from last year's winner Adam Cooney, he looked a bit lost.
A strange interview by Roberts included questions about his thoughts on winning the Norm Smith Medal, the demeanour of his coach Mark Thompson and whether he'd like to hook up with Tiger Woods when he's in town in a couple of months.In one moment of sense, Gazza did throw in that his old man "would be stoked".
Ten minutes later the 25-year-old was facing the press, something for years he'd tried to avoid, and admitted he was still shaking.
"I was the least nervous this time," he said in reference to being the beaten favourite the previous two years.His captain Tom Harley said nothing ceased to amaze him when it came to the No.29 and he was confident the win wouldn't impact on his performance on Saturday.
Ablett added: "A premiership means more to me than this."Earlier it had been former winner Chris Judd who had put it beautifully, as he always does, when interviewed by Tim Watson after Round 13. The Blues skipper said about Ablett: "There wouldn't be a more deserving winner in the room."By that stage Ablett had kicked six clear and already had 22 votes.
Surely, that was enough. However, there were some minor heart flutters with Judd, St Kilda's Lenny Hayes and Brisbane captain Jonathan Brown all making mini runs at him.It was appropriate that Watson was the man with the microphone on the floor given it was the Essendon champion's bake on Ablett where he declared him "selfish" which inspired his brilliant finish to the season and ensured the Brownlow was FINALLY his.
There was no heading back home to Torquay afterwards with Ablett and his girl staying at the night Crown. A very quiet party with a couple of friends was in order, nothing too big, although at last report there was some loud music playing from his room: "Finally it has happened to me . . ."