SOUTH EAST FOOTBALL NETBALL LEAGUE
GRAND FINAL – BEST ON GROUND
By David Nagel
JUST five people stood between Matthew Davey and the Cranbourne coach’s box as he leant over the fence and gestured to his brother Ryan to join him at the 22-minute mark of the final term.
“Cheekers, come here, Cheekers, Cheekers,” Matt yelled.
Ryan ‘Cheekers’ Davey, the same man who had just kicked two last-quarter goals to seal the fate of the 2016 premiership cup, spotted his sibling from the interchange bench and took the small walk forward.
“Mate, I’ve never ever been so proud of you, you’re a champion, I love you,” an emotional Matt said as he embraced his brother around the neck.
Those words echoed the thoughts of the entire Cranbourne Football Club on Saturday.
Ryan Davey – he simply stood taller and prouder than the rest.
He did so for four quarters, controlling the midfield battle against Berwick, and did so again in the change-rooms after the match. Standing on the benched-seating surrounding the room, Davey looked satisfied, his right hand wrapped around a clothes hook for balance, his left hand wrapped around the sweetest tasting beer he had ever tasted in his life.
A premiership player in 2011, he suffered badly in grand final defeats in 2012/’13, missed through injury in 2014 before the bitter taste returned last year. It just made this moment … well it made it oh so sweet.
“It’s been an unbelievable build up to get to this point,” he said.
“Sometimes it felt like we were never going to get there, but Goose (Simon Goosey) has turned our mentality around, it’s all about enjoying our football and I’m loving being out there again you know. I’ve been here since I was a kid – it’s one of the best feelings you can ever have.
“We’ve been through a lot, so many different presidents, coaches, players, but the one thing we all have at the Cranbourne Football Club is that we want to win, we don’t want to be competitive, we want to win, and a lot of people have worked extremely hard to get us into this position.”
Davey said the feeling was surreal, especially with his great mate and champion, Marc Holt, missing with a broken leg.
“I’ve been thinking about it for so long it just didn’t feel real,” he said.
“We had two minutes to go and people were telling me we’d won it, but it wouldn’t sink in, it’s hard to believe that it’s happened to tell you the truth. I feel bad for Marc, not being there, poor bloke, but we did it for him, the way he led us all year and the positivity he brings to the group … we love Marc.”
And the Cranbourne Football Club loves you Ryan ‘Cheekers’ Davey.
