The Hawthorn Football Club has had its share of success over the years, but for lifetime supporter Geoff Gant, Saturday's triumph was one of the sweetest.
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He was among thousands of fans at Glenferrie Oval on Sunday to celebrate the Hawks' runaway grand final win over Sydney.
The team went into the game as underdogs but quickly took the lead, claiming a convincing 63-point victory and back-to-back premiership flags.
Mr Gant first saw the Hawks win a grant final as a teenager in 1961 and said the first win was always the best.
But 2014 was "up there" as one of the best, he said, a win made even better for a club having overcome adversity during the season, when coach Alastair Clarkson was struck down with a serious illness.
He said in recent years he had not seen a Hawthorn team play with such intensity for four quarters.
"It was a team of champions versus a champion team, and their champions didn't stand up," he said.
The players could not hide their delight as they took the stage, smiling widely and throwing Hawthorn caps into the adoring crowd.
But it was not all plain sailing at Glenferrie the day after as the club's celebrations caused a fire near the train tracks at the back of the oval.
Organisers shot gold streamers from the stage out into the crowd, but they caught in the wind and blew behind the stage into powerlines above the tracks, sparking loudly and starting a fire.
The fire brigade soon arrived and are working to put out the small fire.