By Marcus Uhe
The enormity of Patrick Bruzzese’s achievement was only just sinking in when he was told a special piece of information on Saturday evening.
Now a two-time premiership player after playing as an 18-year-old winger in 2018, the dynamic midfielder has just led his team – made up of largely his best mates – to premiership success at such an early age, a fact he was struggling to come to terms with.
“Someone came up to me earlier and said ‘There are only five of us left living’,” said the new premiership captain.
“I’m 23-years-old captaining a premiership side, who does that?
“For me and Tom (Hinds, co-captain) to put our mark on that is awesome.
“It’s pretty wholesome.”
Despite his age, the co-captain exudes the maturity of a veteran many years his senior.
So much so that his premiership experience from 2018 remains fresh in the memory, to the point where he can pinpoint differences between this year and then.
Previous iterations of the Bulldogs would have dropped their heads and not responded well to a side kicking a run on, where the Wandin of 2023 carried-on unperturbed, and fought fire with fire in the grand final.
The resilience shown, to go the hard way via the qualifying and preliminary finals, only steeled the resolve, before overthrowing the regional powerhouse, only adding to the satisfaction.
Having pushed the Magpies twice, and knocked them off once already this year, there was a belief that they could do it, instilled by the leaders and the coaching staff and bought into by all.
Add the internal drive of all involved, particularly those in the fringes of higher footballing honours, and it’s a perfect cocktail of hunger.
“The boys are tight, and they’re committed,” he said.
“You get Joel (Garner) coming back from VFL and he wants to come here.
“Connor Smith wants to progress in his footy and go up higher, and that’s awesome for him, but when he comes back here he gives 100 per cent.
“We’ve had recruits who just come in and get pay cheques, and it’s not it anymore; the boys want to be here and they embrace us.
“Aaron Mullett came in and knew who he was.
“He embraced us, we didn’t have to embrace him, he embraced us and got around us.
“I’ve won a flag with my best mate now, and three blokes I’ve played junior footy with my whole life.”
But to a man, every Wandin person interviewed on Saturday spoke of the club’s supporter base.
The ‘Wandin Army’ as they were colloquially dubbed roared with approval in the forward pocket at the highway end of Officer Recreation Reserve, having made the 45-minute drive through the Dandenong’s to cheer their side on.
And you best-believe they could hear it.
“We said on Thursday night that there’s going to be 3000 of us here, and they sit in the corner and they’re louder than anyone,” Bruzzese said.
“It means so much to them and you can tell when they flood the field.
“You get blokes who have been hanging around the club their whole life and some of the older boys, it means as much to them as it does to us.”
Joining Bruzzese with two flags for the Bulldogs was Hinds, Daniel Hirst, Harrison Byrne, John Ladner, Patrick Hodgett, Tom Merlino and Clint Johnson.
