The Batemans Bay Seahawks senior teams gallantly wrapped up their history-making 2023 season in the AFL Canberra league in two nail-biting grand final games in Canberra on September 2.
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After a largely undefeated season, The Canberra Times Community Men's Division One side clinched the premiership at Phillip Oval from the ANU Griffins.
Player-coach Michael Kenny said a strong first quarter was the "catalyst" for their win.
"We just thought we needed to start well and get a bit of a jump on them," he said.
He said Brett Garland, who racked up a massive 53 goals this season, secured four goals and Dylan Art landed two in the first quarter.
"We knew [the Griffins] would come back in the second quarter," Kenny said.
And sure enough, the Canberra team pushed back.
"They threw everything at us, but our backline withstood the majority of what they had.
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"We were lucky to run away with it."
The Griffins were lucky to rack up 11 behinds but were unable to match the Seahawks' 11 goals.
By the third quarter, the Seahawks were soaring towards a convincing premiership win.
The final score was 11.6 (72) to 3.11 (29).
"The best part about our team is we've never gotten too far ahead of ourselves.
"We've played this season contest by contest, quarter by quarter. We knew we were a quality side, but for us, it was all about seeing what was ahead."
The win also signals Kenny's emotional departure from the division one team after coaching for seven years.
"It's not very often you get to go out in a fairytale finish," he said. In 2024, the Seahawks stalwart plans on joining the reserve side.
Earlier in the day, the senior women's team fought hard to maintain their winning streak against the Googong Hogs at the Phillip Oval.
After 11 consecutive wins this season, the Seahawks were pacing towards a twelfth win, rounding up the first 20 minutes with a 5-point lead and even managing a goal in the first minute of play.
Senior women's coach Aaron Wickham said the side was "under the pump" from the second quarter.
"We went in with a bit of plan to get the centre clearances which worked," he said.
"The Hogs made some mid-field rotations [after the first quarter] which brought us unstuck."
Under some extra pressure, the women's side was unable to come away with a grand final win.
Despite the loss, the side still finished on top of the ladder with 46 ladder points and just two losses. Sophie Alves also kicked the most goals in the competition.
He said many of the players experienced their first major loss in the match, with 14 of them only picking up the sport this year.
"The pressure [of the Hogs] was just phenomenal. We threw everything at them but they played smarter footy. Once the ball was down their end, we couldn't get it out."
The Hogs defeated the senior women's side 6.5 (41) to 3.4 (22).
The Canberra Times 2023 Community Men's Division One, Grand Final, September 2 results:
- Batemans Bay Seahawks 11.6 (72) def. ANU Griffins 3.11 (29)
The Canberra Times 2023 Community Women's Division One, Grand Final, September 2 results:
- Googong Hogs 6.5 (41) def. Batemans Bay Seahawks 3.4 (22)