Spectators and AFL legends alike were treated to a spectacular game at Jack Eddy Oval on Saturday, with the Magpies pulling off a thrilling fourth-quarter comeback to hand league leaders Cobram a stunning seven-point defeat.
It was chock-a-block in front of the clubrooms and the grandstand was full of fans — and in amongst them were a pair of legends from the Carlton Football Club.
Rod Ashman and Wayne Harmes took in the action on Saturday, watching on as Moama claimed its second win against a top-two opponent in as many weeks.
Ashman played in 236 games for the Blues, kicking 370 goals and winning two flags with Carlton in 1981 and ’82.
The courageous forward spent his whole 14-year VFL career with the Blues.
He was inducted into the Carlton Hall Of Fame and was also named in the Blues’ Team Of The Century as a forward pocket.
He shared the field with Harmes, who himself had a career at Carlton that spanned 12 years with the Blues.
He won three flags in his career — 1979, ’81 and ’82, claiming the Norm Smith Medal for his performance in the ’79 grand final.
The two weren’t the only Carlton legends at Moama — assistant coach Ken Sheldon won three flags with the Blues alongside Harmes and played more than 130 games for the Baggers.
Sheldon would go on to play 53 games at St Kilda and he would later go on to coach the Saints for four seasons from 1990-93.
Sheldon and Harmes of course combined for one of the most iconic moments in grand final history — in the 1979 decider, Harmes famously dove towards the boundary line and thumped the ball into the goal square where Sheldon picked it up to kick what would be the game-winning goal.
The legends hung around after the game, enjoying a drink in the club rooms with Moama’s past players and fans.