By David Nagel
The past, present and future of the Cora Lynn Football Netball Club was on full display on Saturday on a rare and unique day for the club.
It felt like a changing of the guard…delivered with the clinical precision of a Swiss watch over an exciting six-hour journey.
At 4.30pm Cobras first-gamer Max McDermott capped off a fine debut with two last-quarter goals helping to sink Bunyip in a classic battle-to-the-death contest between two great rivals.
McDermott’s first goal was celebrated wildly, with every player in the current-day senior team rushing to his side to make the memorable moment more special.
Amongst those rushing to his side were Jaxon Briggs, Jeremy Monckton, Tim Payne and Brady White.
Fast-forward six hours and Briggs, Monckton, Payne and White had all been acknowledged as Hall of Fame members of the Cora Lynn Football Netball Club at a special function held at the Cranbourne Turf Club.
A selection panel of Andrew Bergmeier, Wayne Brook, Michael Dillon, Terry Dillon, Gary Fisher, Ron Hampton and Ray Payne were delegated the difficult task of selecting Cora Lynn’s Team of the Double Decade…from 2001 to 2020.
With four premierships over that journey, one in 2008 and a clean-sweep from 2014 to ’16, there were no easy decisions to arrive at.
Payne and Anthony Giuliano, the only players to have played in all four flags, were walk up starts, with Payne being given the huge honour of being named captain.
With deputies like Brendan Kimber (vice-captain) and Jeremy Duiker (deputy-vice-captain) by his side…Payne is in exclusive company.
Then the names continued to roll out.
Jack Allen, Ryan Gillis, Darren Sheen, Ricky Clark and Brad Horaczko were all named in the team, with the Cobras’ three premiership coaches over that 20-year journey….Chris Toner (2008), Travis Marsham (2014-15) and David Main all inducted courtesy of those successes.
Toner, who would later go on to coach Narre Warren to back-to-back flags in 2012-13, was then named as coach of the team of the last 20 years.
He received his award from 1986 premiership coach Joe Lenders.
“I only found out on the night, and it’s pretty significant because someone I have a stack of respect for, Joey Lenders, said that we both had similar stories,” Toner said.
“When he took over Cora Lynn he took them from the bottom to the top, and I was fortunate enough to do the same.
“And that’s not being self-indulgent…I had a lot of help from a huge amount of people.
‘But to receive the award from Joey was terrific for me because of the respect I have for him.”
Toner coached the Narre Warren reserves in 2005, but his quest to be senior coach was foiled when freshly-retired AFL star Austinn ‘Aussie’ Jones made his way to Kalora Park.
Toner was quickly snapped by Cora Lynn and the rest, as they say, is history.
“Terry Dillon gave me 30 minutes to make a decision,” Toner recalled.
“I remember driving my wife out to Cora Lynn for the first time and she said ‘Where is it’…I said ‘this is it’.
“There wasn’t much out there but it ended up being the best time we had in football.
“It was big time in our lives, we arrived at Cora Lynn with one child and came home with four, there was a bit going on.”
Toner began to build belief as soon as he arrived in 2006.
“Cora Lynn had some really good players, they just needed a little bit of guidance and a bit of belief,” Toner said.
“They accepted losing when I got there; they were such nice people, and there were some challenging times when we were trying to make those (cultural) changes.
“Once the change was brought in, they accepted it and bought in and players like the Duiker’s, Chad Ingram, these types of fellas, were certainly right in amongst it.”
Toner said there was one player at the club that certainly caught his attention.
“Darren Sheen was a superstar, he was only 18 or 19 when he got to Cora Lynn and kicked 132 in his first year,” Toner said.
“He’s averaged 6.7 goals for every game that he played there, which is just incredible.
“He would have to be the best player that has ever played at the club.
“One day against Bunyip he had eight goals at three-quarter-time, a great day in anyone’s language, and he finished the day with 18.”
Toner also made special mention of long-time Cobras administrator Terry Dillon.
“How many administrators have done 20 years as a top-level CEO, COO, in the AFL, and then equally as much at country level…not many if anyone,” Toner said.
The Cobras also announced their netball team of the last 20 years on Saturday night, with players predominantly made up from the 2002, ’03 and ’05 premiership teams.
Ray Payne was inducted into the Hall of Fame for more than three decades of coaching, while Andrew Bergmeier was inducted as a Legend after serving as president for 17 years between 2001 and 2020.
Turn to FOOTY 4 for a graphic of both teams.
