Eamonn Snow

The @aleaguemen Grand Final was perfect because it celebrated an entire community that built, supported and kept alive their own club. It gave them the chance to experience the passion of football with their friends, colleagues, community. That is the game, in a sentence. Whether the crowd is 20,000 or 100,000 doesn’t matter, what matters is the experience that brings a community together, creates lasting memories, for generations. This will be talked about in 50 years. The treble. The atmosphere. The sharing of joy on the field between players and community. For once, the fans won. They won the right to have their reward where it belonged, at home. They won for the game respecting their devotion and ensuring they could have the right to host. If the fans had won more, been asked and listened to more throughout the years, there’d be record crowds every week. Take the lesson. Build on it. Because the football has grown, and grown, and grown. It is outstanding, fast, young, exciting and the game has grown tactically at a stellar rate in the last decade. It has been a difficult period but put the fans at the centre of decision making, as happened last weekend, and continue. An excellent last week, all round, that should serve as a boost to everyone working hard for, and who love the game. Reward the passion.