As days go, there have been few bigger in Portarlington Golf Club men’s pennant history.
You could comfortably argue that this might have, in fact, been the largest.
The men’s Division 2 AND Division 5 teams both rolled back into the clubhouse to begin celebrations on Sunday night as winners of their respective pennants.
But more, they both finished the season as undefeated champions and earnt promotion to Division 1 and Division 4 for season 2027.
Not since the second of back-to-back pennants in 2009 has Port won a Division 2 flag - and not since 1988 in Division 5.
In fact, the two additions to the trophy cabinet are only Port’s 10th and 11th in all men’s grades since becoming part of what is now the SWGA’s club competition.
And the moment was not lost on any of the 14 combatants on the final day, nor their teammates who helped create this slice of history throughout the season.
“I had to borrow sunglasses off `The Moral’ (Dean Jeffrey) because I knew I was going to cry,” proud Division 2 captain Phil Toyne said.
“I’ve been playing pennant eight years, not as long as some, but it feels amazing to have both teams win on the same day. We’ve come close a couple of times, but we’re here now.
Members of both champion pennant teams kick off their premiership celebrations.
“And the best thing about it was that it’s not just one or two superstars who dragged us over the line, we’ve had great commitment from about 20 blokes across both teams that have got us here … and no matter who we brought in, we had the same great spirit and obviously great results.
“When we came out of Covid a couple of years ago, Juzzy (former captain Justin McGrath) put this team together and I took over from him when he stood back from pennant. So I just sent him a text message saying this was the culmination of all the work he’d put in and the reward we finally got for all the efforts he put in and getting everyone invested in pennant again.”
And as the length of the Sunday night party will attest, the relatively young make-up of both squads means a bright future lies ahead of the men in red and blue.
“Grant Peacock just said the same thing to me – it’s not just a bunch of old guys who are really good, it’s a lot of youth at this club who are playing really good golf and are really committed to pennant,” Toyne said amid the raucous celebrations.
“So the future is really bright and hopefully it will translate next year in Division 1 – not just to be there, but give it (the flag) a real shake.
“And honestly, you can feel the spirit among all the boys here – it’s a really good atmosphere and to have that depth and interest is what makes these things possible.
“It’s absolutely huge to have both teams be (unbeaten) champions. Pennants tend to be very even competitions and to hold your nerve as a team throughout the season, particularly in the finals, is an incredible achievement.
“But for two teams to do it, it’s absolutely enormous for the club.
“We’ve said for a few years (that) our Divvy 5 boys were too good to be in Divvy 5, but for whatever reason they haven’t quite gotten over the line.
“But what a great day for the club – it’s huge for us in Divvy 2, but the Divvy 5 boys were just as impressive, actually dominating their final as well.
“Yeah, very proud of the boys. It’s enormous.”
Club captain Jenny Edmanson said everyone connected with Portarlington should be ecstatic with the teams’ achievements.
“All at the club should be so proud of not only the way the boys played in their respective finals, but the way they represented Portarlington throughout the season,” Edmanson said.
“They were obviously competitive in their matches, but they were very respectful of their opponents and carried themselves with humility after their wins – and I know that players from all other clubs respected the way they conducted themselves.
“It was particularly pleasing to me that everyone was pushing towards the one goal, which was success for the club and not as individuals.
“I want to particularly thank pennant co-ordinator Matt Marles, who not only ran everything smoothly, but had such great rapport with players who had hard selection calls that didn’t go their way.
“It’s a huge credit to him and all involved that nobody dropped their head about missing selection, but stayed involved and supported their teammates even though they weren’t physically playing each match.
“That’s the stuff that has made this so amazing – such a team effort.
“There’s no reason we can’t keep this going next year and be right in the mix in both new divisions.”
