And so it came to pass that the Mighty Fourths reached the Grand Final.

With a 14 to 2 win/loss ratio for the season the team had beaten every other team in the competition at least once. The surprise was that after the neck and neck race with Uni and Gordon to the finals, it was Manly that the team faced at Concord to decide the championship.

After the convincing win last week in the preliminary final, the team had to feel confident going into this game - but Manly had beaten Uni the previous week and anything can happen in a final.

Concord looked a treat but the early morning start meant that there was still some dew around and the slippery conditions were going to be a challenge. Whether it was the questionable footing or just nerves but Norths made some errors in attack early – especially in kicking in general play. Their defence, however, was spot on and they pressured the Manly attack from the get-go. They tackled hard and were quick and precise at the breakdown. Manly’s only answer was to infringe and very soon Norths were on the plus side of a very lopsided penalty count.

Scott Barnes kicked two good penalties. One long range angle shot hit one upright then the other and went over... it was looking like Norths' day. The Manly blindside flanker, their captain, was yellow carded at this point. While Norths were already getting on top, this took much of the “wind” out of Manly. The long range kick by Scott Barnes from the penalty hit the cross bar and ricocheted back into the field of play. It must be something with the Barnes name and hitting the woodwork after his namesake also repeated the trick on Saturday night with the Wallabies...

Norths were up 6-0 but were not yet playing at the level they finished last week. Some lost ball and lost footing stalled their attack at times. Then the ball was swung wide to Scott Barnes and he swiveled but was caught. Centre James Nakkan picked up the ball at the back of the ruck, stepped, accelerated and was through. He set off on a typical hard run towards the corner with the Manly cover in pursuit. For the hundredth time the defence was too slow and James went over in the corner for the first try of the Grand Final.

It was a great milestone for this evergreen player - but there was only passing recognition of the achievement on the field by James and the other players. This was the grand final and celebrations could happen later, so let’s get on with the game.

Scott Barnes converted the try from the sideline and suddenly Norths had pulled away to a 13 point to nil lead. In the minutes up to the break, Manly tried valiantly to get back into the game. They tried to go wide but the Norths defence was turning the attack back inside then crunching it.

Manly finally had a kick at goal with minutes to halftime but they also hit the crossbar from well out. Norths went to the break 13-nil up. They hadn’t played that well - but, as good teams often do, they were able to accumulate points while keeping Manly scoreless.

The wind shifted and strengthened during the break and when the game restarted a stiff following breeze was now favouring Manly. With the breeze and a fair bit of possession Manly again pressed to get back into the game. Norths defence was outstanding – as good as it has been all season. Every player contributed, moving up to pressure the Manly players and hitting them low and hard and barely a tackle was missed. Manly was unable to break the line and eventually they would lose the ball or infringe and Norths would again move up field.

Norths were controlling the tempo of the game and there was a feeling that if Norths could be the next to score that would almost be the ballgame. When Scott Barnes punched through a low floating kick to the Manly fullback the Norths backs moved up quickly. The fullback fumbled the ball and he and the other Manly players stopped momentarily – Pat Nakkan didn’t. He scooped up the loose ball and was on the way to the line, celebrating as he went. He knew the importance of the try.

He then celebrated with the Norths supporters behind the try line and the on the way back to halfway made a detour to celebrate with Sam Carson on the sideline – a class act. The try was converted and Norths were out to 20-nil with about 20 minutes to go in the game. A Manly comeback was possible but unlikely against this mean Norths defence.

For the next 10 or so minutes, Manly tried to stage that comeback and then, eventually, they just wanted to score some points in the game. Norths denied them both. The substitutions were made in the Norths line up and as happened last week, each new player stood up and contributed to the final efforts. The way this team finished off games with this step-up in effort was a highlight all season.

With seconds to go Norths got a scrum in centre field about 40 metres from the Manly line. The fulltime siren went as the scrum is preparing to pack. A simple kick into touch and the game was over. Norths decide to run it as a final flourish and almost went over for a final try – a great way to finish this very special game.

The celebrations that followed demonstrated clearly what this game had meant to the players and also how much they wanted this win. Captain Keith Coassin summed it up in his speech after the game when he said that this had been about the whole season’s performance and not just today’s.

While all players contributed to this great result there were a few standouts. James Nakkan had a great game playing both wide and close to the ruck with some damaging runs. To get his hundredth try in a grand final was excellent timing.

James FitzGerald at number 8 had an outstanding game in attack and in defence. He seemed to make an extra 10 metres after the initial contact in the tackle with every run he made. Keith Coassin had a great game as captain and halfback James Stokes saved his best two games of the season for the finals.

This team was a blend of youth and experience. The two gelled well all season with a great mix of enthusiasm and discipline. And it was always about more than just the 15 players on the field. The high standard of the bench and their contributions showed the excellent player depth at Norths this year.

Congratulations must go to the coaches, Brendan CROWE and Andrew Fitzgerald and manager, Nobby Osbourne. It is a highly deserved result for these enthusiastic Norths men. The passion that Crowie has had for Norths for many years certainly came out in the team spirit in this win.
The mighty fourths sung the Norths song twice, once outside for the crowd and once inside the change room. The second time the team filmed it for Seti. He had sent a message that was played to the boys before the match. That was their message back.