WHEN Jack Newnes lined up for THAT goal after the siren at Optus Stadium on Saturday night, watching on through hand-covered eyes was the last man to do the noble deed for Carlton: the great Stephen Kernahan.
Kernahan, the dual Premiership captain and greatest career goalkicker in this club’s illustrious history, sat glued to the television set in his inner-city home in Melbourne as Newnes readied himself for his moment with destiny.
As he watched on transfixed with his daughter Katie (and oldest daughter Ellie on the receiving end of his mobile phone), the 251-game former great feared the worst.
“We were dominating the game the last three quarters, but we just couldn’t score could we,” Kernahan said.
“I said to my girls ‘there’s a disaster coming here’ until that very last second – and what a kick it was. Jack had a wet, heavy ball, he bombed it 60 and it went through two-thirds post high.
“Did I think Jack would kick it? Well I’ll tell you this - while I don’t know how many goals Jack’s kicked this year, he’s bombed a couple from 45 and 50 on the run… and when I saw Eddie (Betts) and little ‘Gibbo’ (Michael Gibbons) near where the kick was to be taken I remember thinking ‘they may struggle to get there with the wet, heavy ball’.
“When Jack snuck in there I thought he was the best bloke to bomb it – and did he bomb it! Putting to one side the pressure after the siren and the rain throughout the game, it was one of the great kicks. It was gun-barrel straight from worse than a 45-degree angle and it was just magnificent.”
What also impressed Kernahan no end was the fact that Newnes went with the drop punt. As he said: “Everyone kicks around the corner from right in front thesedays, but it was great to see the goal done right with the drop punt – and in doing so, Jack Newnes has written his name into Carlton history forever”.
It’s 33 years this month since Kernahan slotted what probably remains, next to Fred Stafford’s goal in the dying seconds of the 1947 Grand Final, the most significant six-pointer ever kicked by a Carlton player.
As with Newnes’ against the Dockers, Kernahan’s goal after the last bell secured his team a four-point victory – but in the latter’s case the double chance, the week’s break and effectively the Club’s 15th flag.
It happened way back in 1987, in the nip-and-tuck Round 22 match with North Melbourne at VFL Park – and while the final kick in question didn’t require the meterage demanded of Newnes, Kernahan had to work harder to put himself in that position.
With but a handful of seconds left on the clock, ‘Sticks’ took a hotly-contested trademark grab despite the best efforts of North’s Mark Hepburn - around 30 metres out from the Wellington Road end goal on a 45-degree angle with only seconds left on the clock.
Having noted with interest Newnes’ post-match comment about following his routine in lining up for goal, Kernahan recalled that’s exactly what he did in the lead-up to that magnificent six-pointer against the Kangaroos.
“When the siren sounded I just went back and kept to my normal routine and kicked it… and thank God it went through. It got us top spot in ’87 which helped us Grand Final day,” Kernahan said.
“Who’d have thought mine went gun-barrel straight - I could kick in those days – and like Jack Newnes now I’ll remember it forever!”
In closing, Kernahan was asked whether thoughts actually turned to that famous moment of 33 years past as the dramatic last few seconds of Saturday night’s match at Optus Stadium unfolded before his eyes.
“I did not think for one second about Round 22, 1987,” came the characteristic booming Kernahan reply.
“I was in the moment… and when Jack kicked the goal I was out of my chair. I was so rapt I was out of my seat.”
