It’s not easy to travel and win. The weather is different. The workplace is different, as are the people around you. Faces aren’t familiar. They can be hostile. It’s not hard to get motivated but it’s easy to get distracted.
Knowing in advance that it’ll end in sudden death is tough, and despite the expectations of competitiveness there’s no chance at winning.
On 16 June, North Melbourne restarted a shocking season with a seven point win over the Gold Coast at Carrara. Two days later I restarted an interrupted public service career with a three month contract in Nambour.
My baby, Angus, was two months old. The commute from my home in Banyo was seventy minutes and 110 kilometres. Instead of enduring that drive ten times a week, I arranged to live part time with my parents at Elimbah, forty minutes from Nambour.
The situation wasn’t ideal. I wanted to be with my son, but with the Newman government slashing public service jobs, I was lucky to have a job. The role would be different too, combining media with strategic communication.
As North Melbourne kept their season alive with a 32-point win over Adelaide, my week of grace was over. Success would require a full time commitment. I was recovering from the Gold Coast half marathon when North defeated St Kilda by 33-points and pondering my employment.
Living in two houses was tough. It was tough on Kristine. There was no help at home. She had Angus fulltime. The nights she bought Angus to Elimbah I tried to leave work fifteen minutes early.
North’s two-point defeat to West Coast in Tasmania was a setback, particularly after we led by 36-points midway through the second quarter. There were setbacks in Nambour too. I felt like a mid-sized attacking forward being forced to play as an unimaginative back pocket.
When a football team loses, the feedback is invariably negative. There may be positives amidst the mess, but the coach usually ignores them. The match was lost, and that’s unacceptable. Brad Scott would’ve been angry. It was the same in Nambour.
The comeback is the measure of any football team. When North thrashed Carlton by 53-points, things had changed in Nambour. You know those days when you feel like a Jedi? I was having those days. The mid-sized forward was kicking goals and everybody loved it except the coach, who still pinned me as an unimaginative defender.
As I started thinking about a possible future, a move to Nambour, North fans were thinking about finals. A four-point win over Richmond in round 17 put us in the eight. I’d been wearing my North scarf in the office ever since I got to Nambour. People were talking to me about footy.
There was a North fan in the office, an old fella looking for a way out of work. He is going to get it courtesy of a voluntary early redundancy. A woman had a partner who loved North. Apparently he wore his North jumper while watching us play. A Richmond fan talked to me about decades of heartache and kept referring to possible future glory, maybe next year.
Sure, I said.
Another old woman followed West Coast. She also followed Fremantle. It depended who won. I would end up avoiding her.
I showed everyone the VFL logo on my scarf. It is proof of another era, those suburban days. Everyone seemed impressed.
Victory over Melbourne by 54-points was expected and appreciated. A week later, North ran away from the Western Bulldogs, a 54-point win on the same day I ran the Brisbane half marathon.
The following week in Nambour was a mixture of attacking mid-sized forward and unimaginative defender. Kicking goals was satisfying, but getting dragged back to defence was aggravating and unnecessary.
Two months into my three month contract I knew I was going to be delisted again for the second time in four months. As North was winning against Essendon and Collingwood to cement a final’s berth, I was entrenched in defence and hating it.
North’s momentum was about to crumble. They had expended everything to do a job on the finals and had nothing left. My momentum was gone too.
The week after North was exposed as exhausted against Fremantle, I was exposed as exhausted in Nambour, resulting in two days off with funny tummy, which wasn’t funny at all. I’d also been exposed as a mid-sized attacking forward who didn’t want to play in defence. I could do it, but there was no reward.
Round 22 was proof North’s season was already too long. The 28-point win over GWS was inadequate. It ensured an elimination final in Perth against West Coast. It meant the season was over.
In Nambour, I was advised, unnecessarily, that my contract might not be extended. I didn’t mind. I liked playing attacking mid-sized forward. Most people wanted me to play that role. It suited my abilities but it wasn’t core business. The role I was being asked to play was often pointless but could technically be explained as core business.
On Sunday I went for a run and listened to the second half of the elimination final. After an encouraging third term, I figured North would lose but the margin might be five or six goals. I wasn’t prepared for the 96-point hiding, which continues our shocking run of finals defeats since 1999.
Less than 24 hours after North’s capitulation, my shocking run of employment was confirmed. That my contract would not be extended was expected. Newman was mentioned as a possible reason. I felt it was more than that. Still, I didn’t mind. It meant time off, weeks at home with Kristine and Angus.
At Arden Street, North’s coach Brad Scott is deciding who to delist. Football is a brutal game. Players are judged on ability and good luck, not ability and bad luck. Injuries, poor form and getting played out of position all contribute to sacking.
Sometimes it isn’t injuries, poor form or poor positioning that results in players getting sacked. Sometimes it is the administration or the coach. Players routinely fail in one contract but succeed in another.
The key measure of anyone’s worth a simple self admission. Did I fuck it up??? If I did, I need to improve. If I didn’t, I need to improve anyway.
There is no other way to be successful.
Is everything okay? Where are you working now?
Gopher
How goes it?
Found you.
