Playing its six match in the School Sport Victoria State Championships, Notre Dame College’s Year 11 and 12 boys football team had blitzed through the tournament unscathed, notching comfortable group stage victories and gritty finals wins.
The team’s biggest challenge came in the decider though, as torrential downpour and heavy wind impacted skills and attacking fluency.
Facing Lakeview Senior College at Bundoora on Tuesday, winds of 40km/h had both sides struggle to hit the scoreboard in the early going.
Notre Dame found a goal in the rain early, but so did Lakeview in the second quarter, with the Shepparton-based outfit sliding slightly ahead by half-time thanks to an extra behind on the scoreboard.
The ugly contest had only the opening two goals in the first half, as Notre Dame led 1.4 (10) to 1.3 (9).
While the conditions remained a slippery mud pit, the easing rain allowed for Notre Dame’s slick skills to come to the fore.
With the wind in its favour, Notre Dame began to punch out a lead as the scoreboard finally started ticking over, nailing five goals in a quarter dominated on Notre Dame’s terms.
The quarter was capped with a 70m bomb from Jobe Jakobs, with the launched rocket sailing over the back of the forward line’s forming pack, skidding through 15m of grass to cross the line of the goalmouth.
Kicking with the heavy breeze in the fourth term, it was Lakeview’s time to stamp authority on the contest as the sky cleared.
The Caroline Springs-based side pumped three quick goals on the scoreboard, piling pressure on Notre Dame’s defence that had held up like a brick wall across three doggedly-fought quarters of action.
As Lakeview reeled in towards a stunning comeback, Notre Dame’s Flynn Grumley delivered a clutch steadying major that quelled Lakeview’s surging momentum in a championship-defining moment for NDC.
The only goal kicked against the gale all day, Notre Dame proved its worth as state champion in a desperate final few minutes as it held on for a 7.9 (51) to 5.6 (36) victory.
Notre Dame College sports co-ordinator Rohan Larkin said the school boy talents were deserving of the flag.
“They are an extremely talented group of footballers, having won the state grand final when they were in Year 10 as well, but talent only gets you so far,” Larkin said.
“The most impressive thing about this team was their commitment, camaraderie and leadership.
“It’s a unique experience winning a state grand final with your school mates and something the boys will treasure.
“We take great pride in the performances of the NDC sporting teams and we could not be happier with the way this team represented the college, both on and off the field”.
Caden Ratcliffe earned best-on-ground honours with his two goals, the only player to kick multiple on the day, while Grumley, Sam O’Brien, Rory Duffy, Oscar Lambourn and Will Emanuelli were also acknowledged by Larkin.
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