HDFNL GRAND FINAL: Blues defy top-five history to capture 2023 premiership | PHOTOS

Matched up against old rivals Heathcote on a glorious day at Huntly as the sun again shone brightly on the HDFNL's showpiece day, the Blues became the first team in the league's top-five era to win the flag from the elimination final.

One of the burning questions heading into Saturday's decider was would the Blues have enough left in the tank to win a fourth-consecutive final?

Or would the more refreshed Saints having had weeks one and three off during the finals after finishing on top of the ladder and then beating White Hills in the second semi have too much run in their legs on a warm day for the Blues to counter?

The answer was resoundingly in favour of the Blues as they completely outran the Saints in the final quarter to win by 19 points, 12.7 (79) to 9.6 (60), with lion-hearted Mount Pleasant ruckman Chris Down being awarded the AFL Victoria Medal for best on ground.

In one of the most enthralling HDFNL seasons on record - remember going into the final round the only top five spot that was guaranteed not to change was Mount Pleasant in fourth - it was fitting that just one point separated the two grand final combatants at three quarter-time.

Heathcote coach Andrew Saladino had predicted in the lead-up to Saturday that it was most likely going to be a survival of the fittest and the stage was perfectly set for such an ending with his side ahead by one point as the Saints led 8.6 to 8.5.

With the game perfectly set-up for a climatic finish entering the last quarter it was the Blues who pounced early and within just four minutes had grabbed it by the scruff of the neck and wouldn't surrender the advantage.

Mount Pleasant's Calean Smith needed just 20 seconds to boot the opening goal of the final quarter with a kick out of a contest sailing through after Blues' co-coach Adam Baird had won the centre clearance and driven his side deep into attack.

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When Smith bobbed up again moments later after receiving a handball from Zebb Murrell and goaling from 20m the Blues had opened up an 11-point advantage.

That lead then became a 17-point buffer in favour of the Blues when Reardon McIvor, after winning a holding the ball free kick with a run-down tackle on Bill Direen, nailed the set-shot, putting Mount Pleasant up 71-54 at the four-minute mark.

From the resulting centre square contest McIvor won another holding the ball free-kick and drove the Blues back into attack.

With momentum firmly the way of the fast-finishing Blues, it continued when tall Mitch Bennett marked 30m out and goaled, making it four majors in 11 minutes as Mount Pleasant led 78-54.

There was no coming back from there for the Saints as they were completely stifled by the Blues, whose pressure when the game was there to be won was outstanding, while Heathcote couldn't generate the free-flowing play it desperately needed and too often turned the ball over.

After the Blues - spurred on by the disappointment of losing the grand final to LBU a year earlier - piled on the first four goals of the final term, the only goal the Saints could muster came at the 19-minute mark.

That was off the boot of ruckman Braden Padmore, who after being the recipient of a 50m penalty on the wing converted the set-shot with what would prove to be the final goal of the game.

Ultimately, the Blues kicked 4.2 to 1.0 in the final term as just like the gripping preliminary final against White Hills the previous week, they turned a slender three quarter-time deficit into victory.

"It's an unreal feeling and probably a bit surreal at the moment," an elated Blues' co-coach Baird said.

"This group is just unbelievable and to do it coming from fourth with every final tight...the boys just kept fighting and fighting and to be honest, it gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.

"It has obviously been a long time since the club last won a flag (2006) and you can just see what it means to everybody... it's fantastic."

Mount Pleasant won the flag having finished fourth on the ladder.

Since the introduction of the HDFNL's top-five finals system in 2001, prior to Saturday the only other team to have made a grand final from outside the top three was North Bendigo in 2012.

By grand final day though the Bulldogs were a spent force and were crushed by 94 points by LBU, but the Blues had plenty left in the tank and the longer the game wore on showed no signs of the wear and tear of three tough lead-up finals against Leitchville-Gunbower (elimination), North Bendigo (first semi) and White Hills (preliminary).

"We had belief in the group and I spoke at three quarter-time about the way we've finished off our other finals that it's a fact we've been over-running sides and it showed again today," Baird said.

While Mount Pleasant finished the game running all over the top of the Saints, early the warning bells were ringing for the Blues as - just like the previous year's grand final against LBU - they were jumped.

It's said that scoreboard pressure is the best pressure and the Saints applied it early with a 10-minute salvo to start the game.

Inside the opening 10 minutes the Saints had 3.1 on the board and the ball had yet to enter Mount Pleasant's forward 50.

Dynamic Heathcote forward Corey Grindlay, who was matched up by Blues' defender Sam Greene, kicked the first two goals of the game.

The first came after a contested mark 30m out; the second he drilled from 20m; before Cheatley medallist Liam Jacques slotted the Saints' third to continue their early blitz.

The Saints couldn't have asked for a better start to the contest and were all over the flat-footed Blues.

But having been put on the backfoot early, the Blues responded and sparked by co-coach Baird remarkably went into quarter-time in front.

The Blues answered the Saints' three goals to start the game with three of their own through the lively Jack Mackenzie, X-factor Mitch Rovers and Nick Butler and at quarter-time led 3.2 to 3.1.

The second term was one littered with a trio of ripping grand final goals.

The first came off the boot of the Blues' Tyler McNamara when deep in the pocket and running away from goal at the Bendigo end his left-foot snap curved through to give his side a seven-point lead at the 12-minute mark.

However, McNamara's goal was answered by a couple of beauties in the cricket nets pocket by the Saints' Rhys Bolton, who threaded a tight set-shot from deep in the forward pocket, before Joseph Beedle steered home a ripper from the boundary.

There was no grand final nerves in front of goal for either team as the Blues (7.2) and Saints (6.3) combined to score 13.5 in the opening half.

The Blues skipped out to an 11-point lead early in the third quarter after a goal to Zach Charles before the bulk of play for the remainder of the term was spent in Heathcote's front half.

Staring at the prospect of slipping a precarious three goals in arrears the Saints responded with two goals through ruckman Braden Padmore and Grindlay to get their noses in front at the final change.

While Down was awarded the best-on-ground medal for his work in the ruck as he dominated the taps and was able to regularly give his mids first-use, it could have also so easily gone to either Baird, who was electric through the midfield as he became a premiership player for the sixth time in his senior career, or Smith.

Smith spent four of the first five rounds this year in the reserves, but on Saturday he was a grand final hero with three goals, which included the two early ones in the last quarter that would prove the catalyst for the Blues busting the game open.

"Cal has probably been our most improved player this year and has really shone over the past six weeks. He has been huge for us and his last quarter was unbelievable," Baird said.

As well as Smith's three goals, the Blues also had Bennett and Rovers kick two apiece, while down the other end defenders Michael Whiting and Fletcher White featured among the best as did midfielder Riley McNamara.

Grindlay (three) and Padmore (two) were multiple goalkickers for the Saints, whose best included backmen Connor Hamilton and Bill Direen, the hard-working Billy Price, wingman Rhys Bolton, skipper Codie Price and the pacy Beedle.

For the Blues, Saturday's win caps what has been a six-year journey from top to bottom, with the club going from wooden-spooners in 2017 to now winning its 20^th senior premiership.

The premiership team was co-coached by Baird and the injured Ben Weightman, who missed the entire finals series with a back injury - meaning the Blues have not only won the flag from fourth, but done so without one of the superstars of the competition setting foot on the field in the finals - while Darren Walsh was also instrumental in his new role as director of coaching.

While beaten, the season has been a seismic one of improvement for the Saints, who before this year hadn't made finals for a decade, but in their first year back inside the top five got through to a grand final.

"Our last quarters have been really good all year, but we just ran out of legs in the last quarter today unfortunately," Heathcote coach Saladino said.

"Early in the game we obviously got off to a really good start with the first three goals and it was looking like we could be in for a good game.

"But just like Mounts have been doing for the past three weeks, they kept chipping away and grinding and full credit to them... they have been unbelievable not just today, but for three weeks now.

"To win it from fourth is a huge effort by them, but we will learn from today.

"I don't know if you need to lose a grand final first like they did last year to know what it feels like and get that experience going forward, but we just have to stick together."

Mount Pleasant 3.2 7.2 8.5 12.7 (79)

Heathcote 3.1 6.3 8.6 9.6 (60)

GOALS: Mount Pleasant: C.Smith 3, M.Rovers 2, M.Bennett 2, J.Mackenzie 1, Z.Charles 1, T.McNamara 1, N.Butler 1, R.McIvor 1. Heathcote: C.Grindlay 3, B.Padmore 2, H.McCarthy 1, R.Bolton 1, J.Beedle 1, L.Jacques 1.

BEST: Mount Pleasant: A.Baird, C.Smith, C.Down, M.Whiting, F.White, R.McNamara. Heathcote: C.Hamilton, B.Price, W.Direen, R.Bolton, C.Price, J.Beedle.

AFL Victoria Medal - Chris Down (Mount Pleasant).

Adam Baird

Bailey White

Bryce Hinneberg

Caelan Smith

Chris Down

Connor Moore

Daniel Whiting

Fletcher White

Jack Mackenzie

Mason Wakefield

Michael Whiting

Mitch Bennett

Mitch Rovers

Nick Butler

Pat O'Brien

Reardon McIvor

Riley McNamara

Sam Greene

Tyler McNamara

Will Wallace

Zach Charles

Zebb Murrell

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