Tom Clurey (centre) sings with his teammates in the changerooms after their rolling of Tungamah in round one.
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Homecomings don’t come much better than this.
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Tom Clurey has made a dramatic return to his childhood club with a Katamatite victory in round one of Picola District Football League.
Bearing the black armband in memory of the big backman’s late gran, the Tigers took to the field against rival Tungamah at the weekend, with Clurey playing centre half-back.
The final score was 13.11 (89) to 6.7 (43).
“To be honest, it was the most I’ve been excited about footy in a long time,” Clurey said of the clash.
“In the build up to round one, I felt so excited and keen for something different.”
The big defender got his first taste of premiership glory after his Southern Districts side took a 15-point victory in the Northern Territory Football League grand final last month.
The Tigers’ win against their Boosey Creek Cup rivals on Saturday is also Clurey’s first time on a match-winning Katamatite side.
Clurey’s decision to play with Katamatite came at about Christmas last year.
It included turning down a lucrative offer from Yarrawonga in favour of getting a chance to play footy with his brother and good mates.
“That’s one of the reasons I decided to come back to Katty. The last time I would’ve played with him was 2012, so a long time ago,” Clurey said.
Tom Clurey playing alongside his brother Nichol at the weekend.
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Perhaps all the signs were pointing Clurey back to his old club.
“It was always going to be hard to say no to coming back to my local footy club,” he said.
“I felt like a 15-year-old kid again running around for Katty and, obviously, playing against Tungamah as well, that’s always a big game, big rivalry, so all week, as I said, I just felt like a little kid.”
He’s excited to see where the year will take the Tigers and the part he will play in it.
“I think we’ve got a pretty good team and a solid life this year that we should be able to play some solid footy,” Clurey said.
Faced with so many contenders, Clurey couldn’t zero-in on his favourite part about returning to Katamatite.
“It’s probably a couple of parts, one obviously being that home feel about it,” he said.
“I know most people at the club, whether it’s players or supporters. And also the excitement around the club. I’ve never seen the club have the buzz about it that it has at the moment.”
With numbers up on the track, the season is looking promising for the Tigers.
But for Clurey, there’s a little more to it.
“I’m 31 now,” he said.
“But for the last couple of weeks, I’ve felt like a teenager again.”
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