It was a poignant evening for the players as they farewelled coach Sam Campbell, who is moving to Melbourne to further his career.  

“It was a special night, because it was a bit of a goodbye for now,” Campbell said.

“[The players] were all pretty disappointed, but they understood. I sort of told a few people, but I didn’t really tell everyone until after the grand final. I didn’t want to have it out in the open too much.”

Roos secretary Jenene Forlonge said that Campbell was an integral part of the club and would be “sorely missed”. 

“He’ll be sorely missed as a coach, but also as part of the previous year’s playing group and as part of the club itself,” she said. 

“He’s certainly been good value.” 

Despite his imminent departure from the club, Campbell said that everybody enjoyed themselves on the night and rightly celebrated a dominant season. 

“It was a good night, a messy night for a few of the boys,” Campbell said. 

“It was a season that the boys would’ve been proud of. To go 17 and one and fall short on the last day, that’s what happens I guess. 

“It was nice to get together for the last time of the year and celebrate the year.”

To make the night even more memorable, the Roos managed to secure GWS Giants Academy Pathways manager John Quinn as the emcee for the night. 

“Everyone I’ve spoken to had a good night, enjoyed John as the emcee,” Forlonge said. 

The fact that a small country town managed to get him, and then we had Kevin Sheedy [former Essendon and GWS coach] on Facetime, followed hot the heels by Leon Cameron [current GWS coach].” 

Having two prominent names in the AFL feature in the awards night was an exciting moment for many of the players, and Campbell said that the recent trades were a hot topic of discussion. 

“[Cameron] was pretty open about it, about trading [Dylan] Shiel and [Tom] Scully and all that,” Campbell said.