YARRAWONGA has swept aside three years of grand final heart-ache to defeat Albury in a fiery Ovens and Murray league decider.
Five goals to Brendan Fevola helped the Pigeons post a hard-fought 12-point victory, clinching the club’s first flag since 2006.
The Pigeons have fallen to Albury on the biggest stage for the past three seasons and from the outset appeared determined to not let another opportunity slip by.
The minor premiers looked a class in the free-flowing first 10 minutes but suffered a setback when Fevola was issued a yellow card and sent off for 15 minutes.
The former AFL star was clearly the target for some off-the-ball work from Tigers’ defenders and despite being awarded a free kick in front of goal, was soon in the sin bin for some retaliation.
Despite his absence, the Pigeons took a 19-point lead in to the first change and extended that to 31 before the half time siren.
In front of a record crowd of more than 12,000 people, the Pigeons continued to hold sway in the third as the Tigers injury worries reduced the powerhouse to just 18 fit players.
With the wind at their backs, the Tigers pulled the margin back to 12 points in the final quarter but the result never looked in doubt.
Fevola finished with five goals, casting aside a knee injury to complete a highly entertaining season with the Pigeons.
Former Richmond player Craig Ednie took home the medal for best-on-ground with his work in the clinches pivotal to Yarrawonga’s win.
On Friday, a hundreds of locals from the Murray River town turned out as players were paraded on Malibu boats down the main street.
Tonight, you get the feeling that main street might be the centre of huge celebrations.
