Excuse the indulgence, but as a supporter of a certain rugby league team playing in this Sunday’s NRL Grand Final I couldn’t let it pass without a mention…
Being a long-term (40-years plus) St George Dragons fan (supporters of other clubs may want to stop reading now…), I won’t be fishing this Sunday afternoon. Instead I’ll be nervously awaiting “my” team’s best chance since 1999 of taking out the ultimate prize. And win or lose, by around 7pm I’ll at least know if I need to fire up the usual end of season mantra: “There’s always next year”…
Unlike poor Collingwood and St Kilda supporters, who after last Saturday’s drawn AFL Grand Final have to do it all over again this Saturday, on Sunday I’ll be either cheering or crying in my beer wishing I’d gone fishing…
For anyone not in the know, here’s a quick history lesson. The Dragons sport the unique and famous white jersey with the big red V. The jumper carries with it an amazing tradition; since entering Sydney’s rugby league competition in 1921 they’ve been premiers 15 times, second only to South Sydney who’ve done the victory lap 20 times. Incredibly, in one of the greatest feats of any sporting team anywhere, St George enjoyed a run of 11 straight premierships between 1956 and 1966. It must have been just after that when I started following them …
Since that golden era it’s been a long time between drinks, with the Saints’ last premiership coming in 1979. They’ve lost their last five grand finals, the last in 1999 to newcomers Melbourne. I was at that game, so may have jinxed them…
In supporting a team through its highs and lows for so many years I can now see parallels in fishing. Firstly, such loyalty has taught me patience. And the very best fishos I know are extremely patient and focused. They don’t give up when success doesn’t come quickly, instead being happy to put in the hard yards for the desired result.
Many good fishos are, coincidentally, passionate about rugby league and other heavy contact footy codes such as AFL and union. One of the very best fishos and fishing writers I know, David Green, is a league tragic. And despite having lived in Queensland for many years he still follows the Sydney Roosters, the Dragons’ opponents on Sunday …
Fisho writer Kevin Savvas, a gun estuary and inshore fisho, follows the Parramatta Eels. The Eels made the grand final last year after an incredible stretch of wins before bombing out in the decider to Melbourne, a club exposed early this year for large scale salary cap rorts.
Fisho editor Jim Harnwell isn’t a league follower but has become a very keen AFL fan in recent years. Unfortunately for Jim, following a team like the Sydney Swans may also require him to be very patient!
Success in rugby league and other high profile football codes can be as fleeting as yesterday’s hot lure – Parramatta’s coach Daniel Anderson was sacked this week, despite getting his team to the decider last year. Winning a premiership could be compared to catching a once-in-a-lifetime trophy fish. Many players and coaches never get close to landing the equivalent of a 1000lb marlin, 50-pound barra, 100-pound kingfish or 10-pound trout. With the competitions as tight as they are, the chance for glory doesn’t come along often; like a shot at your dream fish, if your miss you might wait a very long time for another chance.
League is a brutal sport in which only the tough survive to enjoy long careers. It’s a game that can be equal parts dour and grinding, blazingly fast and skillful. An 80-minute match like a failed or successful fishing trip – plenty of dropped balls and missed opportunities or constant scoring in the opposition’s end of the field.
Like fishing, league is largely unpredictable. In 2005 the Dragons were expected to win the comp. They didn’t, and instead were knocked out in the preliminary final by the eventual premiers, Wests Tigers. By coincidence these two teams met last Saturday and the result of five years ago was reversed as the Dragons scraped home by a point. Having been amongst the 71,000 strong crowd my voice hasn’t been the same since …
In 2007, Fisho’s Scott Thomas and I took Dragons players, Sam Isemonger and star centre Mark Gasnier fishing with southern-Sydney based guide Scotty Lyons – that’s the Dragons pair in the photo with me looking about 3-feet tall next to them … While Isemonger has since faded from the NRL scene, Mark Gasnier enjoys legendary status – his uncle Reg played for St George during its golden period in the 1950s/60s and is rated one of the game’s best ever.
“Gaz” created a media frenzy when he left league at the end of 2008 to join French union side, Stade Francais. Since Gasnier’s departure, coach Wayne Bennett took over the Dragons helm, after having masterminded six premierships for Canberra and Brisbane – two for the latter club were against the Dragons. Now Bennett’s in line to steer the red and whites to their first premiership in 31 years. In another twist, halfway through 2010 Mark Gasnier returned to re-sign with the club until the end of 2014.
It doesn’t end there – like something from a Greek tragedy, Bennett’s opposing coach this Sunday, Brian Smith, was coach of the Dragons in two losing grand finals against Bennett’s Brisbane Broncos in 1992/1993. Tagged the best coach “never to have won a premiership”, Smith will no doubt hope his team can deliver his redemption come Sunday. Wooden spooners last year, Smith took over as Roosters coach this year and has weaved his magic to get them to Sunday’s grand final.
The stage is now set, and the suspense is killing me – next year I’m almost hoping I’ll be fishing instead … it’s too stressful!
So will it be watching footy or fishing for you this long weekend?
