History was made on Saturday night after the Melbourne Demons beat Western Bulldogs at Optus Stadium in Western Australia in the 2021 AFL Grand Final.
The two teams had not met in a Grand Final since 1954 when the AFL was still the VFL.
Fans from both sides were out in force to cheer on their teams and after a dream year for Tasmanian football, which included two finals games back to back, local Demons and Bulldogs supporters were intent on celebrating - regardless of the result.
Demons supporters William Day and Corinne Deagan said they came out to support their team at the Sports Garden Hotel after their plans to fly to Perth for the game fell through.
He said after being a Melbourne supporter for 35 years Saturday's game was a long time coming.
Mr Day said the only thing he knew before the game was win or lose it was going to be a big night and he didn't plan on processing the result until Sunday morning.
Doggies supporter Dion Alfred said win or lose making a Grand Final was damn hard and felt a tear in his eye when the final siren sounded.
He said while he was excited the Bulldogs made it into this year's final he didn't experience the same level of excitement as he did when they won back in 2016.
"It was the drought breaker, just eternal heartbreak like so many other teams, so it was just good to finally win a Grand Final," he said. Mr Alfred said he would have been pleased with the outcome either way. "If the Bulldogs weren't playing I would want Melbourne to win," he said.
Both teams had a strong start to the season with the Western Bulldogs going undefeated in the first six games of the season while the Demons went 12 and 0.
While he will always be a Dees fan, Mr Day said if Tasmanian was successful in securing its own AFL team he could be persuaded to support it - unless they are playing the Demons.
"I've been following the team ever since I can remember, but if we've got our own team I'll throw my support behind them. "I wouldn't swap outright, but I would support them," he said.
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Andrew Chounding
An experienced multi-platform journalist focusing on the issues that impact health in Tasmania. With a background in social research and public policy, health reporting for Andrew is about ensuring the best health outcomes for the Northern Tasmanian community. Contact Andrew at: andrew.chounding@examiner.com.au or 0437 358 262
An experienced multi-platform journalist focusing on the issues that impact health in Tasmania. With a background in social research and public policy, health reporting for Andrew is about ensuring the best health outcomes for the Northern Tasmanian community. Contact Andrew at: andrew.chounding@examiner.com.au or 0437 358 262
