Williamstown has bowed out of the VFL finals in gut-wrenching fashion after a seven-point loss to the Box Hill Hawks at North Port Oval on Sunday.
The Seagulls had a memorable 150th anniversary season under new coach Andy Collins, their first since splitting from their alignment with local AFL club Western Bulldogs.
They shocked the nation by winning the Foxtel Cup, took out the AFL Victoria development league title for the second year running, and stormed into the VFL finals on the back of an eight-game winning streak.
But this would be no fairytale ending. With scores tied at the 23-minute mark of the last quarter and Williamstown holding all of the momentum, Seagulls ruckman Nick Meese fluffed his kick on centre wing, leading to a turnover goal to the Hawks.
Aided by a longer-than-normal quarter brought about by an injury to Hawks defender Ayden Kennedy, the Seagulls tried to get back into the game but their momentum had been sapped.
Meese was inconsolable at the final siren, banging his fist on the turf as the Hawks celebrated around him.
You could look at 100 other key moments of the game that the Seagulls would have liked to take back, but this error came in time-on of the fourth quarter, making it harder for Meese to swallow.
But for Meese and his ruck partner Sean Tighe, the Seagulls wouldn’t have been in a position to win the game in any case, such was the strength of the Hawks’ big man stocks.
Box Hill’s talls including the controversial selection of Ben McEvoy, who had a major impact in the second half, troubled the under-sized Seagulls. But Meese and Tighe stood up and gave their side a fighting chance.
Battling out of their weight division, the Seagulls refused to concede defeat.
They launched two ambitious second-half comebacks. One was from 24 points down in the third quarter, where they reeled off four goals in 10 minutes to have the game on level terms; the other through back-to-back majors from Ben Bese and Sam Critchley in the fourth to restore parity heading into time-on.
The Hawks steaded with goals to Murphy and Luke Lowden, but even then the Gulls got back up off the canvas, cutting the deficit to five points from a 50-metre penalty goal to David Fahey. Time would beat the Seagulls – their incredible season had come to an abrupt halt.
The topsy-turvy game mirrored the Seagulls’ inconsistent finals series. They played some breathtaking football, but failed to do so consistently in each of their three finals.
Ben Jolley was magnificent for the Seagulls with 18 kicks, 23 handballs and seven tackles. The skipper tried in vain to will his side over the line. Adam Marcon, Ben Davies and Mitch Banner were effective bursting away from the packs, while Ed Carr’s physicality rattled a Hawk or two.
Fahey was the best Seagulls defender, while at the other end Bese’s defensive acts made it hard for the Hawks to clear their defensive lines.
Critchley was outstanding in attack, finishing with a team-high three goals.
