Emotions were running high at the weekend after the Kilmore Reserves brought home the flag for the Kilmore Football Netball Club and its wider community.
The Northern Football Netball League (NFNL) Division 3 Reserves’ Grand Final between Mernda and Kilmore was held at Lalor Reserve – two sides that had been smashing it out all year, and put to the ultimate test on Saturday.
Kilmore seized the momentum from the start of the finals, with Marcus Webb scoring the opening goal for the team.
It was an all-Kilmore match in the first quarter as the side kept Mernda scoreless and ended the first quarter with a commanding 15-0 lead.
Mernda got through the scoring line within the second quarter, producing two behinds and a goal in between Kilmore’s goal, and two behinds. However, Kilmore maintained a strong advantage with a 15-point lead.
Mernda, who last defeated Kilmore with a 32-point win in the second finals round, remained hopeful in the last two quarters, but Kilmore had already established its halfway mark in the third quarter with 54-15.
Amidst the intense kicking and scoring, the Kilmore and Mernda communities were fully invested, enhancing the atmosphere with their banners and enthusiastic cheers on the day.
After a four-quarter performance from the Blues, and the Demon’s fighting spirit, Kilmore got its hands on the finals cup with a 63-37 win.
It was the first time in 23 years the Club had brought home a Senior/Reserves football finals cup.
Coach and player Leigh Irons, who had the opportunity to experience the finals with his son Blake as the Team Manager, said he was ‘still on top of the world.’
“I can’t wait to get the match vision, sit down with the players and watch it, and maybe it might sink in a little bit more when you watch it back, but at the moment I’m just living the dream,” he said.
“Once we got off to the start we did, we played exactly the way we wanted to. [Mernda] they’re very good in the air, we made sure at no point did we kick it long down the line, we wanted to change direction every chance we could.
“I felt so unbelievably proud that I got to be the one for all those people that made sure the doors stayed open when things were really, really tough [for the club].”
Irons said there were times during the match that the crowd’s enthusiasm deeply got to him, particularly seeing the entire township to come out and support.
“For every one Mernda supporter, there were probably three or four Kilmore supporters, the amount of support was crazy,” he said.
“I stood there a couple of times, I tried not to get too lost in the moment, but I stood back a couple of times on the ground and looked at the crowd and I was like ‘the whole town is here’, the support was just insane.”
Kilmore’s Chris Jackson was awarded Best On Ground after an outstanding game in the midfield.
Irons recognised Jackson’s humble actions on game day.
“When he’s near the football, you just feel at ease, especially as a coach, when he’s near the football, you can almost take a breath and say, ‘Okay we’re right here. Jacko is near the footy, we’re okay,’” he said.
“He’s just a person of the highest character, obviously he got awarded the Best On Ground medal.
“The first thing he did was take that off until every single player had their premiership medals … he refused to have it on until all his teammates [had theirs]. That speaks volumes to his character.”
Irons is pumped for another season after the massive win, and hoped the Seniors use it as fuel for the upcoming season.
“Hopefully as a whole club, especially obviously the Seniors side, we just want to improve and develop, and get better. We’re still so young,” he said.
