From the edge of football’s cliff to a spot in the grand final, St Mary’s has produced one of the more extraordinary September runs to be one win away from an unlikely premiership.
In an eerily similar situation to 2019, the Saints have booked a berth in the decider after winning what was effectively an elimination final in Round 18 before punching out three consecutive cutthroat final wins to set up a mouthwatering match-up with archrivals – and minor premier – St Joseph’s.
Co-captain Brayden Ham says the young group, which has defied all expectations following a mass exodus of experienced players at the end of 2024, is embracing the journey.
“I feel like we’ve been saying that internally,” he said. “It’s cliché, but you know it’s game by game, and it has been for the last five weeks.
“Everything’s been cutthroat, and that’s how we’ve been taking it.
“We haven’t really been looking into the future too much; we’ve just been taking it quarter by quarter and game by game.
“I think that’s held us in good stead, and we’ve just got one more.”
Despite the contrasting paths taken to Friday’s decider at GMHBA Stadium, Ham has labelled the match-up with St Joseph’s “a 50-50 battle”.
However, the 26-year-old, who played 45 games with AFL club Essendon, was happy for the Saints to be labelled as underdogs.
“Nothing to lose,” he said.
“We’ve obviously come from other ends of the spectrum, it feels, and we’ve played sort of four elimination finals in a row.
“We’re bloody stoked with how we’ve gone this season, so (it’s) a little bit of a free hit on Friday.
“(But) I feel like it’s a 50-50 battle. We’re pretty excited for it.”
Ham played juniors with Torquay and his early senior football with St Mary’s while at the Geelong Falcons before being drafted with pick 72 in the 2018 National Draft.
After four seasons with the Bombers, he aligned himself with the Saints while featuring at VFL level with Geelong.
However, he made the decision early in 2024 to step away from the Cats and throw in his lot on the other side of Kardinia Park.
“It was obviously tough at the time,” Ham said. “I’ve spent the time at the very top level, and then to come back down was a bit of a reality shock.
“It was hard to take it in at the time, but I wouldn’t really change much with that.
“I’ve loved coming back and playing with mates again, and starting the career off field.
“It’s taken a little bit of time to try and settle into something there; it’s definitely helped with that for sure.”
X: @krockfootball
