“So close, yet so far.”
Those were the first words of defeated Shepparton United women’s coach Grant Searle at the post-match ceremony after Sunday’s heartbreaking one-point Goulburn Murray Women’s League grand final defeat to Echuca at Deakin Reserve.
On the face of it, that just about sums it up on the day — though there was, of course, a whole season of development to look back on with a smile.
“We’ve had a cracking run as a club across both our youth girls and women’s teams,” Searle said.
“One point ... what can you say?
“To think that we started the year with around 14 players; to finish in a grand final is an amazing effort by all the girls.
“It’s just tough to lose the big dance by a single point.
“I’ve been involved since we started seven years ago and we’ve come a long way. The club is heading in the right direction and there’s a lot of new and exciting things in the junior space as well.”
Searle would give the back-to-back premier its due credit, though, and saw more than a few green shoots in his highly competitive squad on the day.
“They’re a good side, no doubt about it; our girls enjoy playing against them,” Searle said.
“I was waiting for us to break the game open, but credit to them for slowing us right up. We were priding ourselves on our ability to run.
“Echuca had some terrific players and it wasn’t just their well-known players, so it was hard to match them.
“I thought Tayla Sampson, Tailah Rennie, Molly Kennedy and Charli Boschetti were sensational for us and Melissa Freestone was a general down back.”
The foundations of that investment are clearly laid out, with United fielding sides in both of Sunday’s deciders.
While it remains uncertain whether Searle will report in as women’s coach in 2025, the Demons came this far in no small part off the back of his long-standing efforts.