South Melbourne is out to avenge last year’s defeat on the biggest stage and claim the 2023 NPLM Championship at Olympic Village this Sunday.
Esteban Quintas’ men has made it to the final game of the season, after finishing with the same number of points and victories as their Premiers’ Plate winning season in 2022.
South Captain Brad Norton said it was a “massive achievement” to win 21 matches throughout the home and away season and make it to another Grand Final, but it would all be for nothing if they couldn't get over the line on Sunday.
In the Semi-Finals, South Melbourne overcame rivals Oakleigh 2-1, exacting some revenge against the side who put five past them on the biggest stage last year.
“It was always going to be a tough game, we knew that beforehand, and I know it was talked up as the grand final rematch in the Semi-Final,” Norton said.
“We knew the hype surrounding the game but I think the old cliché goes you’ve got to take it one week at a time and that’s how we approached it, knowing there are consequences on the line if we don’t win.
“We treated it as another game, we had already taken on Oakleigh twice during the year so we sort of understood how they played, how CT (Chris Taylor) is like as a coach, and how he gets them up every week and especially when it comes to finals games and how much they perform for him and their club.
“We knew it wasn’t going to be easy but we knew if we stuck to our strengths as a team and key values then we would give ourselves a good chance
"They fought hard and never gave up it took a moment of brilliance by Marcus (Schroen) to give us the result.”
The South Melbourne veteran said the playing group hadn’t taken their second opportunity to take home the NPLM Championships within 12 months for granted.
“Straight after the game there was a bit of elation and a sense of proudness and achievement to get over such a great team that come finals is always going to be difficult,” Norton explained.
“It was that sense of real excitement to get over them and then I think pretty quickly once we had our small celebrations we knuckled in as it was all about focusing on Avondale.”
“On Monday, Estaban quickly reminded us there was no point patting ourselves on the back if we can’t get over the line this weekend.
“It’s a one-off game, you don’t always make it, we have been fortunate over the last couple of years but winning the championship doesn’t come around; there is only myself and Marcus Schroen left from the 2016 Championship-winning team so we need to take the opportunity with both hands.”
Norton said his men comprehend what lies ahead of them and are up for the fight.
"It is probably the two best teams in the Grand Final, first v second so it is a fitting way to finish off the season," he said.
"Hopefully, we put in a good performance and come away with the result.
"It’s a Grand Final so it's never going to be an easy game or an easy team to play no matter who you come up against.
"They have definitely been the best team in the league in terms of their results in the league and what they have been able to achieve and we know we may have had the better of them first game round but that doesn’t mean anything come a Grand Final, we saw that last year against Oakleigh."