As West Coast Eagles and Hawthorn prepare to throw everything at each other in the AFL grand final, Koroit coach Adam Dowie can sit back and enjoy the spectacle as a contented man.

When it comes to Hampden league football, Dowie has become one of the most revered, influential and successful figures in history.

Last Saturday Dowie guided Koroit to a 41-point grand final win over Warrnambool. The victory forced a re-writing of the history books for club and coach.

It was the first time Koroit had won back-to-back premierships since entering the Hampden league in 1961. For Dowie, the win lifted him to an exalted position, the first person to coach five senior Hampden league premierships.

His 2015 effort added to successes in 2014 (Koroit), 2010 (Warrnambool) and 2004-05 (Terang Mortlake). He surpassed his former coach and mentor Grant Thomas, who led Warrnambool to consecutive premierships from 1986-89.

Not surprisingly, he has great affection for Thomas and the influence he had on not only Dowie the footballer but Dowie the man.

“I suppose looking back, when I was young I probably didn’t fully appreciate how good a coach Thommo was,” Dowie said.

“He just knew what was important, he knew when to be serious and he knew when to have some fun.

“He was brilliant at building relationships and through that he was able to get the best out of the people around him.

“He took a real interest in you as a person, he would often invite us around for tea or just turn up in the summer for a hit of cricket, he could really sum up a situation. 

“In that type of environment things become very process-driven and you don’t get hung up on the pressure of outcomes, the results look after themselves because everyone is on the same page.”

Dowie played his junior football at Allansford and rose to be part of a senior premiership in 1987. He was then recruited by Thomas to join a Warrnambool team that had won the 1986-87 grand finals.

Dowie quickly won his place in the line-up. But stepping into what many consider the best team in Hampden league history was a daunting task.

“I may have come across as pretty happy-go-lucky and easy going as a young bloke but I had a lot of demons as a footballer back then,” Dowie said.

“I was up and down, it was a real roller-coaster ride, it was such a strong team, very competitive for places. It was all good when I played well but if I had a bad game it would be a long week.”

Dowie fought through those youthful doubts to play in the 1988-89 premierships. Three flags in his first three senior football seasons was a sign of more to come.

He played in a losing grand final with Morningside in Queensland in 1992 and then a reserves premiership with the Blues in 1993. Coaching was the next logical step.

“I think being a teacher has been a great grounding for coaching,” Dowie said.

“The thing I like about teaching and coaching is that you can make a difference. I like to think I am a glass-half-full person and that most of the people I have coached or taught would say we had a good relationship.”

His coaching career started at Nirranda in 1998 and in his second year he led the Blues to their first Warrnambool and District league premiership.

He spent three years at Nirranda before shifting overseas for 2001. When he returned in 2002 he played in his third premiership with Warrnambool before taking up the under 18 coaching job at Terang Mortlake.

The work of Dowie that season impressed the Bloods hierarchy enough to select him as the senior coach for 2004.

The rest is history. Guiding the Bloods to back-to-back flags in his first two seasons made him the hottest coaching property in country Victoria.

His record at Terang Motlake and Warrnambool caught the eye of those at higher levels, with Dowie coaching TAC Cup club Gippsland Power in 2011.

The Power made finals in his debut season. But the chance to push further up the chain was one he decided not to pursue. At the forefront of his decision was his family – wife Jane and their four boys.

“The obvious thing for me was the possible impact continuing to coach at that level or trying to go up again would have on my family and the time I had to spend with them,” Dowie said.

“The other was that when you go to the next level in football the people you are up against are also at that next level.

“I didn’t believe I was any better than the people I was coming up against and the time they put into the job was just mind-blowing.

“And I didn’t want to give up teaching, it is such a rewarding career and I believed I could help make more of a difference there.” 

Dowie can now enjoy a well-earned break but no doubt thoughts and plans for a Koroit three-peat will be jangling around in his head.