Simon Gordon, with son Dane, leads the team onto the ground for his 150th game with Healesville.By Kath Gannaway
TWELVE seconds to siren and Healesville down by five points in a goal-for-goal nail-biter against Warburton.
Simon Gordon, 10 metres out from goal and playing his 150th game for the Bloods gets a free, lines up from what he recalls as “a bit of an angle” and it’s Healesville by a point for a much-needed win. The home crowd lining the fence was ecstatic and so was Gordon.
Kicking the winning goal capped off a never-to-be-forgotten trifecta for the 33 year old who just 10 hours before was by his wife Lauren’s side as they delivered their beautiful daughter Makenna.
After a couple of hours sleep he was at the ground, running on adrenalin, and gearing up to run out for his 150th seniors game.
His dad, former Healesville player and coach Billy Gordon, his sons Blake, six, and three-year-old Dane, his mum Sue and sister Kym and her family, were at the ground to see him tear through the congratulatory banner.
Gordon started in the under-11s for Healesville and played his first senior game at 16.
All up he has played 285 senior games. He played four seasons in two stints with Seymour in the Goulburn League, including a premiership season in 2006, and three seasons with Vermont in the Eastern League where he played in three grand finals including the 2001 premiership team.
He rates captaining Healesville seniors in 2005 among his more memorable football achievements.
With Lauren going into hospital on the Friday, Gordon said the actual timing of his 150th game was not a sure thing.
“It was always an option not to play that Saturday, but Lauren wanted me to go,” he said.
Running through the banner was a buzz, but it was also a change of his well-established pre-game routine.
“I usually run out last, so it was a bit different to be running out in front of everyone,” he said.
Obviously it didn’t faze him. All things considered, it was probably the least of his routine-changes for the day!
