By RUSSELL BENNETT
THE fairytale is complete.
After a season in which they played no home games; in which they didn’t even have a home base; and in which many outside the club dismissed their chances of achieving anything – the Pakenham Silverbacks are Gridiron Victoria Division 2 champions in just their second season of existence.
Scores were tied 0-0 at half-time on Saturday at the Latrobe City Sports and Entertainment Stadium in Morwell between the Silverbacks and the Monash Barbarians.
Pakenham had already defeated the red-hot Division 2 favourites, the Bendigo Dragons, to reach the decider – where they faced a Monash outfit with a championship pedigree.
And it seemed for much of the early going that Pakenham had already played their final in just making it to the championship game.
But in the second half the Silverbacks took their opportunities on both the offensive and defensive ends. They led 6-0 heading into the final quarter and with one hand already on the championship trophy held on for dear life in the tense closing stages – sealing a famous 9-6 win.
