CAMPERDOWN is a sea of black and white, with support for the town’s football and netball club hitting a peak.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Magpies will play Koroit on Saturday in the Hampden Football Netball League senior grand final.
The town’s under 13 netballers are also vying for glory against Cobden.
Nearly all the shops on the town’s main drag, Manifold Street, have been decked out in the team’s colours.
The Little Pharmacy and Shoe Shop's Blair Arnold has extensively decorated the shop front and said she was getting nervous ahead of the big game at Reid Oval.
“My two brothers and boyfriend are in the team,” she said.
“Everyone is getting around the boys. It's been so long, it's really nice. It’s been 12 years since they were in a final and 18 years since they won the flag.
“Nearly every single shop in the street has something in it.”
Ms Arnold said being in a final meant a lot for a small town.
“The football club is one of the factors that make Camperdown what it is,” she said.
“A lot of people in the town have a connection to the the football club.”
Camperdown Football Netball Club media liaison officer Peter Conheady said "everybody is well and truly on board".
He said every year a Camperdown team was in a final there was a shield awarded to the best decorated home or shop.
“The joy is contagious,” he said.
“Everybody's on board. We won in 1999 and 2000 back-to-back under Kenny Hinkley and then played in 2003 and missed out against Koroit and in 2006 against South Warrnambool and missed out. There's a bit of hunger out there.”
He said senior footballer Nick Bateman, who played in the 2006 losing side against South Warrnambool, was the only player with grand final experience.
“We're a pretty young side and 95.5 per cent are home-grown kids that have come up through the juniors together and I think that really aided their success,” he said.
“They're just really good mates and they know each other and feed off each other really well.”
He said six to eight players who were young mascots leading the team onto the ground in their past grand final bids were now playing in this year's side.
The netballers have decorated the town and the grass of the Leura Oval hill with a 'Go Pies' sign.
He said the grand final quest gave the area which was hit by the St Patrick's Day fires something positive.
“It's definitely a lift for the town and the community for sure,” he said.
"It's fantastic for the players, but it's really good for the business houses who have supported the club. It's also such a reward for the countless volunteers who turn up week after week, month after month and year after year.
“Some of them have been there 30 years. It's just really good for those people to see the enjoyment they're getting out of participating and knowing the joy they'll get if we happen to be successful.”