By Hayley Wildes
There are certain moments in time that will be remembered for as long as a club exists.
One of those moments occurred for the Pakenham Pumas baseball club on Sunday afternoon in Ormond.
Taking on Ormond-Glenhuntly Blue in the Victorian Summer Baseball League Division 3 Firsts grand final, Pakenham needed a hero.
With the game tied at 1-1 heading into the fourth innings, Pakenham’s Shaun Fahy stepped to up to the plate with all three bases loaded.
To say he delivered would be an understatement. Fahy smashed a grand slam – the first in his career – to see the Pumas jump out to a commanding 5-1 lead.
Ormond-Glenhuntly would never respond and Pakenham went onto claim the premiership with a 7-3 win.
“That was a great feeling,” Fahy said of his grand slam hit.
“I’ve never hit a grand slam before in my life, so to hit one in the grand final and to have my wife and kids there to see it happen as well, to me it was even more joyful to have them there with me.
“The credit goes to the team though; Trent Job, he’s a young kid and he led the team – we rode his shoulders and he was magnificent.”
Whilst the grand final was a tremendous spectacle, Pakenham’s road to get there was just as stunning.
After finishing fourth, the Pumas took on the previously undefeated St Kilda Saints in a semi-final. Unintimidated by the task at hand, Pakenham came away with a 7-5 win to send St Kilda packing and book their place in the big dance.
“We’ve got a lot of older guys who have played plenty of finals baseball and I suppose we peaked our run at the right time – we knew if we made finals we were going to be a good chance,” Fahy said of Pakenham’s finals run.
“We finally got our best side on the diamond for the last two weeks, which we struggled with all season due to family commitments, holidays, injuries and all the rest of it, so it was good to get the right 10 guys there at the one time.
“Everyone had a part in the win in some way, shape or form, so it’s a credit to the guys for digging deep after finishing fourth – it’s pretty special.”
After surprising many on their road to the premiership, Fahy ranks this flag as one of the sweeter ones he’s been a part of.
“This one was a very special win,” he said.
“I’ve played in a lot of finals and won a few flags, but this one at the moment ranks as one of the best ones I’ve been in.
“Winning two games we weren’t expected to win, it was pretty special.”
The Pumas earned their premiership the hard way, but that’s simply part of their DNA. Without clubrooms, despite countless efforts to gain funding, the club is a family that exists because of their love for the game.
“As much as we want to hang our flags on a wall somewhere, we don’t have any walls to hang them on,” Fahy said.
“We’ve been lobbying the council for years and years; we’ve come up with solutions and ideas, but when you don’t have the support of the council it’s really hard.
“We’re guys who just love the game, so at the end of the day, as long as we have a diamond, as long as we have somewhere we can sell food to our supporters, we just play.
“We’re a bunch of old-timers with some young kids coming through and we just want the young kids to have all the opportunities they deserve.”
Fahy highlighted the tireless work of many volunteers as having played a vital role in the premiership, keeping the club afloat and bringing the Pakenham baseball community together.
“We’re a family – a lot of the guys have been around playing together for quite a few years, so it’s just like playing with your family,” he said.
“The spirit is always high, we’re always there every week and there’s so many committee members doing so much around the club.
“From keeping the grounds in good condition and attracting young players to the game, it’s a massive club effort done by so many people working really hard behind the scenes to make it what it is.”
There’s no doubt this premiership will go down in Pumas folklore for all to savour.
