Some home truths and a commitment to being better after a Round 7 loss to Bell Park were the catalyst for Leopold making a second consecutive Geelong Football League grand final, according to captain Marcus Thompson.
Leopold lost that game by six goals and even though the side was travelling well as far as the wins column was concerned, the Lions were not satisfied with their standards.
“We hit a pretty rough patch and we had some honest conversations with ourselves, with each other, to be able to try and rectify a few things that we noticed were slipping in terms of standards and a few other things,” Thompson said.
“So really (it was a) good sign of strength of the group to be able to overcome that and then start playing our best footy at the right time of year. I’m incredibly proud of the group…we’ve given ourselves a shot at another premiership, which is all you can ask for.
“We were missing some experienced players in that game and we felt like we sort of capitulated in a lot of ways in terms of discipline and a few things.”
Thompson said the question was asked whether complacency had set in after winning the flag in 2023.
“We were able to rectify that through a lot of hard work. And, as I said, honest conversations. It’s up to the individual to best prepare each and every week and then as a collective group, making sure we’re all buying into the same standards in which we were the year before. It was certainly a bit of a turning point of the season for us.”
Today’s match will be Leopold coach Garry Hocking’s last in charge and Thompson said the former Cats champ would leave a lasting legacy.
“He’s very much a relationships man and he runs with themes, Buddha, that’s his strength and I guess the biggest thing is the playing group has complete, utter trust in everything he does,” he said.
“And with that, he also trusts us to go and implement it.”
This finals series has been plagued with windy conditions, but the grand final is at GMHBA Stadium, which could provide a little more shelter.
“It’s the ultimate stage in terms of Geelong footy,” Thompson said.
“It’s certainly exciting to be able to have the privilege to run on there and I’m sure South Barwon feels the same. So it’s been a pretty tough month for local footy in terms of the conditions and wind and rain, but all that is part of a winter sport.
“But to have the opportunity to run around on such an elite stadium in GMHBA and really showcase both our game styles, I think that’s what’s going to be really pleasing.”
Thompson said he was reminded of South Barwon’s history of premiership success every time he drives through the gates at McDonald Reserve.
“I drive into McDonald Reserve and on the back of their scoreboard they’ve got a list of their premierships and it’s a great thing for South Barwon, as an opposition you go in there and you are blown away by the amount of success they’ve had,” he said.
“And I could only dream of that for Leopold. But you know, we’re a long way off that now, but I like to think that we’re an ambitious club and we’re working our way towards it and we’re aiming high to try and chase that as much as we can.”
GRAND FINALS
GMHBA Stadium, Friday September 27
Seniors: Leopold vs South Barwon at 2.10pm. Live stream at aflbarwon.com.au
Reserves: St Mary’s vs South Barwon at 11.30am
Under 18 Division 1: Newtown & Chilwell vs St Joseph’s at 9.15am
