For the Launceston Gorillas, the journey to the Tiger Bowl is as winding and undulating as the Midland Highway trip southbound to the venue of the annual championship game.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
But unlike the direction of the bus ride to Hobart, their form line suddenly points up.
One game before the playoffs, the Gorillas looked destined for the scrap heap again.
They had to win against the UTAS Devils and hope the North-West Raiders lost to the Hobart Knights in what undoubtedly proved to be Gridiron Tasmania's closest season yet.
Surviving another week, things turned full circle but in the same breath stayed the same.
The Gorillas punished the Devils further 34-6 in a repeat win at the elimination final.
"It was up against a battered and depleted team," head coach Brett Wheldon said.
"They were running undermanned and it could have gone either way from the start. We just outran them more than anything else."
It has been three seasons since the Gorillas have made it to the Tiger Bowl.
ELSEWHERE IN SPORT
That's hardly a drought but in a league of four teams, that's long enough for the club that appeared in the first three deciders.
"We've had a couple of years of rebuilding, really trying to fix mentalities and change the way we do things," Wheldon said.
"We think this year, and we have taken half the season to get there, but we have finally got our mentality right and we have got out offence/defence firing at the same time."
A familiar foe has been waiting patiently for its rivals on Saturday, having earned the right to advance as minor premiers.
Though the Knights and the last game of the season may not be so familiar to some of the Gorillas.
"I reckon half our team, it's their first trip to the finals," Wheldon said.
The Gorillas are chasing a second title at Tiger Bowl VI after winning the second edition.
But more so than attitude, Wheldon said it's commitment that can make a difference.
"The biggest thing now has been with the training," he said, "and guys with a passion to go out and actually to something with it."
Subscriptions are available here
Sign up to our Sport email here
Andrew Mathieson
The day I realised I wasn't good enough to play for St Kilda or be the No.1 spinner for Australia was when I realised journalism was the closest I could come to follow my passion for sport. And it's not just about the scores for me. It's the back story behind the game.
The day I realised I wasn't good enough to play for St Kilda or be the No.1 spinner for Australia was when I realised journalism was the closest I could come to follow my passion for sport. And it's not just about the scores for me. It's the back story behind the game.
