Sure hands followed and there was never any doubt in front of goal, the Cairns Saints full-forward slotting the major from about 25 metres out in a historic 1000 for the club.
It was Walsh’s fourth for the game inside the first 20 minutes and he walked off Watsons Oval at full time with a perfect 13 straight to equal his best ever haul without kicking a behind.
Mobbed by teammates, fans, family and friends after kicking the famous goal, the ageless 35-year-old said it was something he would never forget.
“I just got mobbed – everyone left, right and centre patting me on the back, shaking my hand – I didn’t know who was who,” he said after the game.
“A bit of emotion came out then because I could see it meant a lot to a lot of people and that sort of made it more significant in my book; I really appreciate that support.”
The 1000-goal milestone, particularly with the one club, is a rare one and perhaps unique in grassroots footy given the transient nature of the sport.
To reach it Walsh has averaged more than six goals each game for almost 10 seasons, overcoming a number of injuries that he thought would have ended his career five years ago.
Before that he played at the VFL level in Victoria, booting “about 500” goals for North Ballarat and then Redan in the Ballarat league before being persuaded north for what was supposed to be a cameo season at Saints.
Ten seasons later he remains and on Saturday walked out on the verge of history, defying a hamstring niggle that threatened to delay the milestone.
“If it didn’t feel right I would have come off, but it felt good,” he said.
“That equals best, 13 straight today and they were coming off nicely but no, I thought I’d be done by now.
“After the run of injuries I had I thought I’d be done by 30.”
The lure of four figures was the motivator for coming back this season, Walsh needing 70 more after last year’s grand final.
Ever since then there has been a countdown of sorts and the full-forward said it was a massive relief to get there.
“I am glad I was kicking truly and was thankful to get it over and done with in the first quarter and not let it drag on,” he said.
“I had felt a bit of pressure and expectation lately and definitely now the focus is building momentum for finals.”
Article Courtesy of Murray Wenzel The Cairns Post
Last Modified on 27/07/2015 10:02