The story of the Western Bulldogs has become very familiar this week – with the years 1954 and 1961 referred to like favourite lotto numbers by supporters.

It was in 1954 that the club, then known as Footscray, won its only league premiership and 1961 marked the time of its last grand final.

Against that background you can understand why there is such hype about the team from the western suburbs of Melbourne finally returning to a decider.

That excitement is not contained to the big smoke, at a home on the outskirts of Jindera there has been a man who has been watching the fanfare with a keen interest.

Don Ross was part of Footscray’s only flag-winning side and would love to see the term ‘premiership player’ applied to another pack of Bulldogs.

On the flipside, the Bulldogs’ opponent Sydney has also known the pain of a long wait for success.

In their guise of South Melbourne, the Swans won a pennant in 1933 but their next grand final win did not come until 2005 by which time they were in the Harbour City.

The 72-year period represents the longest premiership drought in AFL history.

Since 2005, Sydney has reached five grand finals and won another flag in 2012.

If the Swans triumph against the Western Bulldogs the club will have notched three premierships in 11 years, as South Melbourne its trio of flags came over 24 years, 1909 to 1933.

While the Sydney grand final team of 2016 will not feature any players from the Border there is an integral connection to the region.

Former Corowa-Rutherglen forward John Longmire will be coaching the Swans.

The mentor, nicknamed Horse, has the opportunity to become the only man to have coached the Swans to more than one premiership.

It is a tough task to guide one of the AFL’s 18 clubs into a grand final, but Longmire has been able to do it three times in six seasons at the helm of the Swans.

The stories of Ross and Longmire are just two plots in a grand final which holds plenty of intrigue.

Whatever happens there’s bound to be tears of joy and sorrow on what promises to be a day of celebration for two AFL clubs who have known hardship more than most.