Almost a month ago to the day, the Gold Coast Football Club ran out at Carrara to meet the Murray Bushrangers. But this was no ordinary TAC Cup game.
For the first time in the club's short history -- but undoubtedly not the last -- every player proudly wore a black armband.
The 22 players took to the field with a heavy heart but none more so than 17-year-old wingman Todd Grayson.
Just four days earlier his mother Lenore had died on the Sunshine Coast after a short battle with cancer.
The family had known the end was near but the death still came as a big shock.
No one expected Grayson to take the field that day but he wanted to play.
The youngster, who lives at Miami with teammate Matt Fowler, has always dreamed of playing AFL football and has been a standout performer this season.
He maintained a high standard of football all season, despite knowing his mother was gravely ill.
He said playing the game he loves was what his mother would have wanted.
"I knew she would not have wanted me to miss a game of football -- she would have loved it if I played," he said.
Every GCFC player badly wanted to win that day but while the mind was willing, the body would not respond.
Because of the AFL under-18 national championships, it was the boys' fourth game in 14 days.
They were tired and undermanned as they went down to the Bushrangers.
"We were physically flat from the carnival," said McKenna. "But emotionally we were gutted."
It was a poor result but fittingly it was Grayson who provided the highlight.
"It was very tough to play that day but my main aim was to go out there and kick a goal for Mum," he said.
With his family and friends cheering ferociously every time he went near the ball, Grayson gathered the ball on the boundary line in the first term.
In heavy traffic, he weaved around several players to kick a great goal on the run from 40m out on a tight angle.
"It was great -- I have never claimed a goal so much before," he said.
It had been a draining game but Grayson walked off the field as one of the best players on the day.
"He's a strong-minded person and the way he played that day and the way he got through it was just fantastic," said GCFC skipper, Marc Lock.
Two days later, the coaching staff and every player travelled by bus to the Sunshine Coast to attend the funeral. For many it was their first funeral and it hit them hard.
"A lot of our boys were visibly upset," said McKenna.
"Not too many of them knew Toddy's mum, but for them to see him hurt really affected the boys a fair bit."
While it was a very tough day for Grayson and his family -- father Tim and older sisters Carly, 22, and Zoe, 20 -- it was made a bit better by the appearance of his team.
"That was probably the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me," he said.
"It all hasn't been as hard as I thought because I am always with my mates here," he said.
"Mates are the things that get you through stuff like this."
Article written by Nick Smart for the Gold Coast Bulletin
Last Modified on 24/08/2009 13:55