“At 14-0 up I thought Norths might blink, but that would be about as much as would happen, and they quickly got the momentum back in the game and they’re brilliant at doing that.

Having won back-to-back Premierships in 2014 and 2015 to cement their recent dominance of the Shute Shield, there were some expectant eyes gazing upon Eastwood to complete the hat-trick before a ball was kicked last season.