A suspected broken nose wasn’t enough to wipe the grin off East Geelong coach Adam Skrobolak’s face. Skrobolak said he was proud to finally deliver East Geelong its first premiership in 16 years.
The infamous 2007 grand final where East went by two points is now a distant memory said Skrobolak, who admitted he was indebted to the club after his actions in that match.
“I probably owed something to the club after that game, but it’s all payed off now.”
“So much work has gone in from everybody at the club and it’s great that it has finally paid off.”
“We’ve been working towards this for so long now, not just this year, so it’s a great result.”
Although Skrobolak didn’t have the same devastating impact on the match that he usually has, his leadership and spirit on the ground was at his passionate best.
He was reported in the dying moments after an all-in brawl erupted on the wing and was forced to sit out the remainder of the match on the sidelines, although the result was well and truly secure.
He said the commitment each player has to the club are the standout features that enabled them to win the flag.
“The work and time that has gone in, particularly over the last few weeks has been outstanding and no doubt we deserve it.”
Skrobolak said the fact his side had only played one game of football in the previous three weeks had no impact on the game at all.
“If it wasn’t so windy we might have had a bit of an advantage fitness wise but that was pretty much cancelled out.”
The captain coach denied that he has started a dynasty despite talk of some big signings for next year.
“I just hope we can carry it on in the future, I’m really excited about it.”
Having signed on for next year, Skrobolak and his charges will prove a difficult force to overcome if they perform like they did on Saturday.
Last Modified on 15/09/2009 20:34