The Day of Disappointment

Despite the late night, Fletcher was bright and bubbly at 5.45 this morning and convinced me it was time to start the day.  We kicked back and watched some cartoons for a while until the rest of the family arose and Darryl arrived back from his temporary accommodation up the road to work the coffee machine.  (What a guy!  He's moved out for the weekend in order to accommodate us!!!) 

After a lazy coffee we donned our supporters' attire and headed uptown towards the South Melbourne Markets for a bite to eat. 

 

As Dockers supporters it did feel a little weird donning the blue and gold, but our underwear remained loyally purple!  Unlike many Western Australians I support both our local teams, but my heart lies firmly with Freo.  Quite frankly I find it a shame that many supporters of both teams consider it disloyal to support, encourage or even acknowledge the achievements of the opposing WA team.  If only we could unite as fellow Western Australians just imagine what we might achieve!  Instead I see anger, resentment and even hatred between supporters of both West Aussie teams and even find myself being insulted for my decision to support the West Coast Eagles in the Grand Final.

Rant complete.

We were thrilled to meet up with Kathy, Bernie, Kylie, Anthony and Kristen at the markets.  The Johnstons had made their way over to the east coast by various modes of transport and it was great to share a meal together and catch up on the news of the past five months.

After a great breakfast at Café Sweethearts in South Melbourne, it was time to head to the game.  We left Fletcher in charge of Jack and Darryl and headed towards the Crown Casino where we were to catch the tram to Federation Square. 

Here Jacqui, Amanda, Jarrah and I split from Bruce as he was going on to the MCG in search of one last ticket.  We'd come to Melbourne with just two standing room tickets so we were hoping to pick up another ticket at the ground.  Well after circumnavigating the MCG three times Bruce had nothing more than sore feet.  At our end, Jarrah was breaking hearts left, right and centre, but still no ticket.

However, after a walk through (and a pint at) the iconic Young and Jackson Hotel, and with the help of social media, the final ticket was secured.  We had one very happy boy.

We soaked up the atmosphere on the walk along the Yarra to the MCG.  It was great to see that so many WCE fans had made the trek to support their team.  Although we were already showing our colours, we couldn't resist these matching hats.

 

The atmosphere in the MCG was nothing short of electric.  Our seat was high up in the fourth tier, and the temperature was a balmy 30 degrees.  To hear and feel the roar of the crowd was stirring.  To listen to Up There Cazaly and sing Advance Australia Fair with the hundred thousand strong crowd was spine tingling.

 

Then the game started and it ruined everything!  What a shame!  For us it may very well have been a once in a lifetime event and we couldn't have been more disappointed.  Like thousands of others, we had moved mountains to be there in the hope of a win for our home team, or at the very least a good competitive game.  Instead it was like watching the Hawks playing against the Pinjarra Auskick team.  It was the worst game of football in the history of football!  Ever!

 

After the game the atmosphere was completely flat, with WCE supporters deflated and Hawthorn supporters subdued.   We found our way back to Darryl's place via tram with the assistance of Bruce's amazing sense of direction and some very helpful locals. 

 

After a quick freshen up, we joined Darryl and the boys at Andy's place a little further up the road.  Apparently Darryl hadn't coped very well with looking after Jack and Fletcher for the day!

 

 

Nah actually the boys had bonded rather well with their Uncle Darryl.  Well let's face it -with a day that included the markets, the beach, icecream, lollies, a BBQ, cool drink, Ipads and movies, I think he nailed it!

 

It was great to meet Darryl's mob who couldn't have been more friendly or welcoming.  The night slipped by quickly with great conversation and good pizza and ended with me doing a Ned Kelly impersonation.