Words cannot describe how happy I was last night as I watch my beloved Saints get a win against the Eagles in Perth. St Kilda was just the second Victorian Team to win in the last sixty attempts at Subiaco against the Eagles and as impressive as that statistic is, it meant nothing when compared to the pride and elation I felt as Robert Harvey put on a show in his 350th League game and the Saints came marching in for him.
As a St Kilda supporter I am used to hoping for the best but expecting the worst and because of this I was less then hopeful when looking at the Saints chances against the Eagles. In fact I was so pessimistic that I tipped the Eagles to win but forty plus points. How wrong I was. It was the Saints that turned in a stunning performance in a milestone game for a man that is perhaps the greatest the club has ever produced.
Many people were critical of the fact that St Kilda played Harvey in Perth but in my opinion it was the only decision to make. As a Saints fan I say that if Harvey is fit he must play. He is, like Hird, Voss and Buckley, a member of the games elite and his every appearance must be savoured like a fine wine as his astonishing career draws to a close. For him to have waited to play game 350 in Melbourne is akin to waiting for a blockbuster movie to come out on DVD so you can watch it in the comfort of your own armchair. Players like Harvey are rarely seen and I know that I will one day have the privilege of telling my children that I saw the great man play. The fact his 350th game was in Perth means I might just get to see him one more time before he hangs them up and that is just fine in my book.
Perhaps the two biggest questions now facing St Kilda fans are weather Harvey will win a premiership before his time is up and weather that time will include next season. The ball is in Harvey’s court on that front as Saints CEO Archie Fraser has said that the club will have Harvey on board next season if he chooses to play on. The answer to the first question however is a little more difficult. Many would say it is a flat out no but I believe the signs were there on Sunday that St Kilda has started to develop a game plan that is both effective and being embraced by the playing group. On the down side Fraser Gehrig was not in team and it remains a concern that his playing style does not mesh with the game plan carried out at Subiaco.
Still, as I sit here at the computer in front of my signed, framed Robert Harvey jumper and my 1966 Weg premiership poster all the worries fade away and I can bask in the glory of Robert Harvey’s career. I have seen him play countless times and remember many games. His goal from the boundary line, after sharking a throw in, in the dying moments of the game that beat the Cats was a classic as was his head to head performance against Shane Crawford when they both ran for over 25kms and had over 30 touches. Still for all the Brownlows, EJ Whitten medals and Club Best and Fairests he has one last medal on the list to tick off and that is the one that his own individual brilliance is not enough to obtain. For if it was I’m sure he would have one already. I’m not sure if there is a player that is more deserving of a premiership medal but unfortunately that is not the criteria you are required to meet in order to have one in the top draw of your dresser when you are an old man.
Maybe just maybe the Saints can get home for me and for Harves and for that matter every other suffering fan from the last 41 years. Perhaps the best way to sum it all up is to leave you with TISM’s Lyrics about my beloved Sainters. If they rewrite this to feature Harvey I think it’s a top 10 single for sure!
I.
My old man used to take me to the footy;
Now, it’s me takes him.
Been barracking for the Sainters seasons on end –
Seasons cold and grim –
Every season we’d pretend that we were
The great pretenders,
And watch, in the rain, us getting done again
By the real contenders.
Hear the cry ring to the Moorabbin sky,
Nothing can stop it:
Winmar! Winmar to Lockett!
II.
Those Collingwood bastards did us by a point
The day mother died.
When they told dad he shook his head and said,
Makes you wanna cry.
Winmar, you’re a football genius, and, oh,
Let me tell you son,
Remember my old man ‘cos he wasn’t
Referring to mum.
You’ve got my heart when you’ve got the leather,
God’s sake, don’t drop it:
Winmar! Winmar to Lockett!
III.
My dad will be gone in ten seasons’ time,
And, you know, they can
Build rockets that think, have prime time T.V.,
Napalm Vietnam –
So just for my dad they could give us the flag –
Who says they oughtn’t?
It isn’t a matter of life or death –
It’s more important.
Oh, here comes Nicky! Tony’s broken free!
Winmar to Lockett!
Winmar! Winmar to Lockett!
Article written by Luke Mather from oneweekatatime.com.au
