‘LUCKLESS’ is a tag that no footballer wants to have associated with them.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
It's one that Kiewa's Peter Winnett is hoping to shake this weekend, when his Hawks run out onto the oval at Sandy Creek to face Tallangatta.
There's the usual mix of nervousness and excitement bouncing around inside the tagger’s head, but there's another emotion few others would be experiencing in the days before a grand final.
Relief.
A cursed run of injuries and bad luck kept Winnett of Kiewa's two most recent grand final winning teams.
A dodgy knee denied him a run in 2011; a nasty incident with Lucas Mellier left him on the sidelines with a broken jaw as his teammates hoisted the premiership cup this time last year.
He also endured the ultimate heartbreak with Holbrook in 2013, turning in a best on ground performance for the Brookers in their grand final loss to Brock-Burrum.
Winnett's frustration was such that he considered giving away the game he loves over summer.
“I didn't start training until a few weeks into pre-season this year,” Winnett said.
“It's pretty difficult to work so hard for a whole year, only to miss out at the very end.”
It wasn't the prospect of that elusive premiership that stirred Winnett into action though, after contemplating his football future.
It's pretty difficult to work so hard for a whole year, only to miss out at the very end.
- Peter Winnett
Getting out on the field with his mates was reason enough for him to pull the boots on once more.
“I wasn't sure whether I'd play this season for a pretty long time,” Winnett said.
“Ultimately I realised it wasn't about chasing a premiership, I just wanted to get on the park with the guys again.
“That doesn't mean that I'm not 100 percent committed to winning on Saturday.
“Losing to Tallangatta in the semi-final was a big wake-up call for us, it isn't just going to happen, we have to fight for it.”
The unassuming midfielder isn't overthinking anything ahead of the final though, and is simply planning to put his head down and do his job.
“There's a lot of good players running around for Tallangatta, we really need to stop their run,” he said.
“I like the role that I play, it's a little bit more low key which suits me pretty well.”
At long last, Winnett will be able to go through his pre-game routine before donning the brown and gold Hawks jumper.
“I like to clean the house on Saturdays before the footy,” he said.
“When you're up against the league's best players you don't want to overthink.”
