1989 Grand Final: Thirty years on, the absence of Paul Couch still leaves a huge void

Paul Couch’s sudden passing in March 2016 is still painful. He is the only one of the 40 who played in the 1989 Grand Final no longer with us. His absence leaves a void but he’s not forgotten.

Paul Couch won the 1989 Brownlow Medal.

Geelong’s first win of Grand Final week comes five and a bit days out when ever-smiling centreman Paul Couch collects the 1989 Brownlow Medal.

In doing so, he delivers one of the great speeches in the medal’s history.

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It’s a big week for the footy freak from Boggy Creek, as Couch pays tribute to his family, friends and the 60 patrons at the Boggy Creek pub, aka the Sportsman’s Arms Hotel in Curdie Vale, 250km southwest of Melbourne.

The pub sits “half a mile run downhill on a push bike” from the Couch family home.

“I didn’t think I would win,” Couch says.

“I can’t believe it is me.”

He jokes Boggy Creek is a magical place, even if the aroma is a mix of “fresh air and cow dung”.

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Gary Ablett and Paul Couch back in 1989

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Thirty years on, that moment has a poignancy for his teammates — and family — almost as much as the events that will unfold at the end of the week.

Couch’s sudden passing from a heart attack — at 51 — in March 2016 is still painful.

He is sorely missed, given his zest for life, cheeky humour and outstanding football brain.

He is the only one of the 40 men who played in the 1989 Grand Final no longer with us.

His absence leaves a void for those he played with and those who loved him. Vividly, the memories live on.

Barry Stoneham recalls sitting on the winning Brownlow table, watching Couch lock in his win in the penultimate round to finish two votes clear of Hawk John Platten.

“I was pretty young, but to be sitting on Couchy’s table that night was incredible,” Stoneham says.

“Grand Final week was new to us … it was hard to contain our excitement.

“But ‘Blighty’ (coach Malcolm Blight) told us to just enjoy the week.”

Couch after winning his Brownlow Medal

Couch’s parents, Bill and Maree, are babysitting his 15-month-old son Tom — who would later play three games with Melbourne — in Geelong while Couch and his wife, Geraldine, attend the count at Melbourne’s Southern Cross Hotel.

The club has booked a hotel for the 25-year-old in Geelong, to shield him away from the distractions.

Thankfully, he is also given the week off from his job as a “hygiene controller”, or as he prefers it, “a garbo” for Corio Shire.

Cats powerbroker Denis McMurrich, who organised the job for him, celebrates a $10,000 windfall after he backed Couch at 330-1 and promises to give him $1000.

Couch’s chaotic start to the week includes the Brownlow count, the Carbine Club lunch on the Tuesday and a Super Clinic at Waverley (for which he nervously boards a helicopter to ease the travel burden) before getting back into training.

His next mission? To keep his mind on the job ahead, which he manages, despite a lack of sleep throughout the week.

Game day is approaching and with it, a whispering campaign that he might be targeted at the first centre bounce.