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STATE CHAMPIONS
2005 Year 7 Boys Football
The Year 7 Boys of 2005 are the last of our Football teams to claim the State Title.
Coach Gary Michael claimed his 2nd State Title, the previous being the 1996 Year 7 Boys led by future AFL players Steve Johnson and Karl Norman, who won it by 73 points at Windy Hill.
The 2005 team was a different beast to the 1996 one. For starters, thy boasted no future AFL players. In fact, of our 11 State Title teams, the 2005 team is one of only two (1994 Intermediates the other) not to feature a future AFL player. In fact this group didn’t feature anybody that went through the Murray Bushrangers system either.
They did however have a great mix of good talent and size.
Captain Danny Allan followed the lead of older brother Jamie, who 2 years prior was Co-Captain of our 2003 Senior State Champion team. They remain the only brothers to both Captain a State Title outfit.
Allan played in the Under 15 Ovens & Murray Schoolboys (equivalent to today’s V-Line Cup North East Border Division 1 team) two years later.
Allan, Dale Martin and Patrick O’Donaghue, would all play in an O&M 3rds Premiership for Wangaratta Rovers in 2008, all of them as Year 10s.
As far as boys that had long Senior careers, Martin led the way, playing 100 Senior games for the Rovers, including debuting as a Year 11 in 2009. His father Rick had once spent time on St Kilda’s list in the AFL
Daniel Mulrooney was another known to be a classy player, and played some Senior football at Wangaratta Magpies while still at school. Mulrooney, Allan and Martinmade up a strong and skilled starting midfield unit. Mul‘s father Peter had also been recruited to the AFL, playing some Reserves for St Kilda.
Nathan Hooper played Senior football at Wangaratta Magpies, and many say he had the talent to play a lot more. He instead moved to the Ovens & King and was a top line goal kicking midfielder for Milawa, before coaching Whorouly at a young age.
Around the smaller brigade of talent, you can see the size of the boys such as Damien Stone, Karl Strasser etc along the back row.
Luke Brabazon was a Man Mountain who won multiple State Gold Medals in the Shot Put, discus and Javelin. That very year, he won Gold in both the Shot Put (14.49m) and Discus (44.14m).
Ryan Patterson won the B.O.G Medal in the State Final playing at Full Back.
Then you had the talented Chris Thewlis at Centre Half Forward. Thewlis ended up choosing Cricket over Football at 15 years old, and played 17 years of Premier Cricket for Camberwell. But his goal from 30m out with seconds remains in this State Final, will forever be folklore. We had trailed all day, and were 3 goals down with minutes to go. Thewlis marked with 45 seconds on the clock with the scores level, and put it through, with the siren sounding moments after his goal, and us State Champions by 6 points. It has to be the greatest moment in our School Football history.
Other points of interest include Hooper, Sam Aldous and Bryce Mortimer winning a Squash State Title that same year. Quite remarkable to get 2 in a year.
Aiden Bihun, who would go on to some Senior football at Wangaratta, and plenty at Milawa, joined his father Craig as Football State Title a winners. Craig won a Herald Cup in 1985 at Waverley Park exactly 20 year prior. They are the only Father-Son combination to do it.
