JASON Mifsud will relive fond memories when he walks onto Reid Oval to toss the coin for the Hampden Football Netball League grand final tomorrow between Koroit and Warrnambool.
A former Maskell Medal winner and premiership coach, Mifsud's finest moment came at the ground in 2003 when he inspired the Saints to one of the greatest comebacks in league history.
Koroit trailed Camperdown by 48 points at half-time in the grand final but was able to overrun the Magpies for a memorable victory.
Mifsud's seven second-half goals will never be forgotten by the big crowd which attended the match, earning him the Ron Hoy and VCFL medals for best-on-ground.
The AFL Foundation chief executive officer is in Warrnambool as one of the guest speakers at the Eagles' grand final breakfast and a guest at it the league's grand final luncheon.
HFNL president Alan Rourke said Mifsud was approached to be involved in the coin toss because of his iconic standing within the league.
"He has a fair bit of Hampden history and he doesn't get down here much,'' Rourke said.
Lisa Van Ginneken and Judy Mounsey will sing the national anthem before the senior football and netball games respectively.
SHANNON Grant, Jason Mifsud and Sarah Wall are guest speakers tomorrow at the Eagles' grand final breakfast.
Run annually by North Warrnambool Eagles at City Memorial Bowls Club, the breakfast has become a grand final tradition in recent years.
Grant, a former North Melbourne premiership player who reached the 300-game club, is now coaching Frankston Dolphins in the VFL.
Mifsud, a former Koroit and Caramut premiership playing coach, is chief executive officer of the AFL Foundation. Wall also has links to the south-west.
The former Camperdown netballer is attempting to break into the powerful Melbourne Vixens starting line-up.
Tickets are available from North administrator Jarrod Lewis.
HIGH on the list of objectives for field umpire Jamie Lake tomorrow is a graceful ending to the HFNL grand final at Reid Oval.
Lake succumbed to cramps as the final siren sounded in last Saturday's preliminary final at the same venue and fell to the ground in obvious pain. A colleague rushed to his aid and succeeded in helping "Plugger'' get back on his feet.
With no lingering physical issues Lake earned selection for the season finale alongside Billy Oggero and Brad Oates.
CHOOSING a central venue for the MDFL grand finals last weekend proved a winner with spectators.
The league recorded a record gate of $19,560 at Lake Bolac, well above the previous highest return of $15,100.
It reflected heightened popularity throughout MDFL finals, with aggregate gates up 22.4 per cent.
Hanlon Park proved a popular venue for SWDFNL grand finals. Patrons paid $17,405 to attend the football and netball deciders, not far off the league record of $18,500.
THE post-season wasn't all doom and gloom for the North Ballarat Rebels.
It was one of three TAC Cup clubs to be presented with $1000 prizes at the Morrish Medal on Sunday.
Gippsland Power, Northern Knights and the North Ballarat Rebels were acknowledged for their involvement in the Transport Accident Commission's L120 Program.
The TAC's road safety manager Samantha Cockfield said the L120 Program was part of the partnership with AFL Victoria, under which the TAC Cup players were encouraged to practise their skills on the roads as well as on the football field.
Players also logged their driving practice hours on the team tally board. The Rebels participated in three driver sessions dealing with peer group pressure and helped the TAC breath-test racegoers in Warrnambool.
The Geelong Falcons earned $500 as one of five teams highly commended for their efforts.
A COMPUTER breakdown was responsible for turning the Maskell Medal into a five-hour epic last Sunday.
Making the event a feat of endurance took some of the gloss off what was otherwise a great afternoon, although league officials should be encouraged to continue streamlining the process.
Having said that, the umpires arrived at worthy winners of the senior football and netball awards in Josh Walters and Kate Dobson.
Some of the other award winners were: netball umpire of the year, Qalo Sukabula; football MVP, Nick Couch, Terang Mortlake; netball MVP, Nicole Dwyer, Port Fairy; football rising star, Tom Watson, Cobden; netball encouragement, Laura Blackburn, North Warrnambool Eagles. Community radio station 3WAY FM presented an MVP award to Nick Couch and rookie of the year award to Warrnambool onballer Damien McCorkell.
Life membership was awarded to Kerry McGlade. Koroit won the club championship and South Warrnambool was named the most disciplined club.
FORMER Camperdown footballer David Lake and his son Rory will play important roles in the AFL Queensland grand final this weekend.
Lake is non-playing coach of Mount Gravatt Vultures, which meets Morningside on Sunday to decide the QAFL Cup. Rory plays as an onballer with the Vultures.
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