Amid joyous scenes in the Williamstown rooms following the grand final win over Box Hill Hawks on Sunday, young midfielder Michael Gibbons and a member of the club’s training staff sat quietly behind closed doors to assess the state of the Norm Goss Medal winner’s ribs.
Gibbons, jumper off and his two medals lying on the rub-down table to his side, was in clear discomfort while the trainer lurked with a stethoscope to provide a clearer reading of what was going inside the player’s body.
To the untrained eye, there had been no sign of any injury for the previous 120 minutes, such was Gibbons’ ability to carve up the Hawks en route to best-afield honours.
Perhaps the adrenalin of playing on the biggest stage allowed Gibbons to power through four tough quarters of football against a battle-hardened Hawks side, racking up 28 disposals, 11 clearances, five marks and a goal in one the best games of his short career.
Only minutes earlier, Gibbons was in a state of ecstasy, hearing his name read out as the Norm Goss Medal recipient for best player on the ground.
“It topped off the day, I guess,” he told Star Weekly.
“You sort of dream about those things the night before but when you get to the game it’s all about just winning it with the boys.
“I didn’t even consider the medal when they were calling it out.”
Gibbons is just 20 and a lightweight, listed at 174cm and 70kg.
What he lacks in size, he makes up for in speed, skill and an incredible appetite for the contest.
Gibbons is just one of a number of young rising stars in the Seagulls’ ranks. The balance of youth and experience in the side is tremendous and young and old have each other’s back.
There are no cliques in the Seagulls team, just a togetherness that only stand-alone clubs get to experience.
Gibbons was thrilled for one of the elder statesman of the team, captain Ben Jolley, to be able to win a premiership at the age of 29.
“I spoke to Ben during the week and said, ‘Mate, I’m so happy we could win the prelim to give you another shot at a grand final’,” Gibbons said.
“He said, ‘I’m so happy we won it for the younger blokes to experience playing in a grand final early in their career’.”
