The South Warrnambool rover defied treacherous conditions to kick the Roosters’ only two goals, helping his side to a 2.6 (18) to 1.6 (12) triumph in the lowest-scoring decider in the competition’s history. 

Johnstone passed away on Monday after a four-year cancer battle. He was 48. 

Family and friends will remember him as a talented all-round sportsman with a generous nature.

Noel Mugavin coached Johnstone at South Warrnambool during its 1990-91 premiership seasons.

Mugavin said Johnstone’s role in the mudbath grand final —  he kicked a goal in the first term and one in the final quarter — was telling.

“But the way he represented the football club throughout his whole career was outstanding, both on and off the field,” he said.

“He was the most wonderfully-loyal person to his club and teammates and was genuinely respected so highly throughout the league. He was extremely gifted on both his left foot and right foot and extremely fit — he was very much the modern-day footballer.”

Mugavin said Johnstone was a beautiful man and a terrific person in the community.

One of Johnstone’s premiership teammates, current South Warrnambool coach Nigel Kol, has vivid memories of the 1991 grand final.

Kol recalled the tough conditions the two teams confronted and how one player — Johnstone — rose above it all to steer the Roosters to a win.

“On the bus to Mortlake we had to slow down three times on the highway because of the water on the road and when we arrived at the ground and watched the seconds play you couldn’t tell one team from another,” he said.

“He was a real trench warfare bloke, hard in and under, and left no stone unturned.

“(That game) was all about effort, not skill, apart from Lyle’s two kicks for goal because they were all about skill.”

Kol said Johnstone was an honest, quiet, unassuming bloke.

Peter Auchettl said his brother-in-law had gone down in local folklore with his 1991 grand final performance.

Auchettl said Johnstone loved South Warrnambool but that the football journeyman, who moved around for work, also enjoyed stints at Sandringham, in the Northern Territory and at East Perth.

Johnstone, affectionately known as Lak, even spent half a season playing for Collingwood’s VFL reserves side. 

His sporting feats extended beyond the football field.

“He had very good endurance in his football and that transferred into running,” Auchettl said.

“He ran the London Marathon and broke three hours for that, an outstanding achievement.

“He was a very accomplished cricketer and played here for Dennington.

“He opened the batting at a very young age — he might have only been 16.”

Auchettl said Johnstone’s positive outlook helped him tackle his illness.

“He always kept really fit and that held him in good stead when he was battling cancer,” he said. “He was diagnosed in June 2011 and it was stage four then.

“They said he might have a short period but he battled through.

“He had a strong mental aspect to his approach.”

Johnstone — the only boy among five sisters — was a keen supporter of Peter’s Project and proud to see the south-west community throw its weight behind the cancer charity.