A very proud Nirranda president Jake Harkness described the club he has run for the past two seasons as his “family” and that is exactly the theme that dominated its senior premiership victories on Saturday.
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The Blues secured victories in the Warrnambool and District league’s top grades in football and netball and there were plenty of family connections to celebrate them.
“The whole club is my family,” Jake said in the rooms as he and his son Brayden savored the footballers’ 31-point victory over Old Collegians.
“You know this is my boy (Brayden) but they are all mine. We have a lot of great workers around the club and this is the reward for the work they have done.”
For the Harkness clan it had four generations of boys, in Bruce, Jake, Brayden and Hugo, there to celebrate the momentous occasion.
“We got a photo of the four of us which was pretty special,” Brayden said of the moment his family came together.
“It was great and it’s something we will look back on when Hugo is a bit older and have a chuckle about it. It’s a pretty special moment.”
The Couch family featured in both the football and netball victories with Jo named best on court in the A grade’s 13-goal victory over Dennington.
Her brothers Mitch and Nathan were solid in defence in the senior football side’s comprehensive victory.
Jo had the netballers’ premiership flag draped around her neck as she hugged her brothers in the mass celebration that took place on Reid Oval.
“It’s pretty good,” Mitch said as the three celebrated the victory together.
“It’s a good result in the end to get two wins out of four.”
Nirranda also had two sets of brothers celebrating the triumph together.
James and Dylan Willsher as well as John and Will Paulin all enjoyed the occasion with their siblings.
“It was just weird as we aren’t really affectionate,” Will said when he found his brother on the field after the final siren had sounded.
“It was unreal I just grabbed him and it just got weird.”
For Will he could only sit back and admire as his younger brother stormed to a best on ground medal.
“We just feed off each other and when one of us got it going, like today, he was on,” the midfielder said.
“I just let him roll with it and just enjoy it as much as we can.”
Immediate family was not the only type of relation featuring in the Blues’ victorious football side with cousins Daniel and Ben Threlfall and Jason Lee and Daniel Craven sharing the joy.