It might have been a bit of kick and giggle, but Jack Riewoldt was genuinely delighted to propel his Rampage team to an AFLX grand final win over Nat Fyfe's Flyers.
With less than 30 seconds left in Friday night's decider at Marvel Stadium, Riewoldt converted a set shot for a 20-point super goal from a tight angle to give his side an 84-67 win.
"It was good fun ... I loved it," Riewoldt said.
"The game was the final to what has been a fantastic last two days.
"It's not very often that you get 50 of the best AFL players together without their (own) colours on, to put themselves in a vulnerable position to try something new.
"I think everyone absolutely loved it."
Fyfe had given his team the lead with his own super goal just minutes earlier, only to be denied by Riewoldt.
After a scratchy start in the earlier matches, the grand final was a fitting end to a night of popcorn football fun.
The much-hyped but oft-criticised concept attracted an official crowd figure of 23,828 although the top deck of the stadium was closed and there were plenty of seats available on the bottom two.
The players were familiar, as were the skills - but that's about where the similarities to a normal evening out at the AFL ended.
From the rectangular pitch, with a rock climbing wall at one corner and a bar diagonally opposite, to the light-up goalposts to the multi-coloured beanbags scattered along the city wing - it was all a bit different.
On the field, the ball pinged from end to end, there was the occasional high mark, with Riewoldt and Isaac Heeney pulling down the biggest grabs of the night.
Riewoldt shared one of the lighter moments with teammates Patrick Cripps, who converted an NFL-style field goal held by the Richmond star.
But with made-up rules, a notable lack of intensity and no traditional team allegiances to get excited about it lacked the passion of a normal AFL encounter.
However, as Fyfe was at pains to point out in the days leading up to the tournament, AFLX was designed to be a bit of fun for kids.
"I think we saw from the buy-in from the players that this concept has legs," Fyfe said.
"It doesn't in any way try to take away from regular footy - it's designed to be fun and complement our game.
"I think it potentially has a future."
Most of the news in the lead-up to the much-maligned tournament was about the players who dropped out.
Melbourne pair Tom McDonald and Steven May, Hawthorn trio Chad Wingard, Luke Breust and Isaac Smith, Port Adelaide's Robbie Gray and North Melbourne's Robbie Tarrant (shoulder) were all drafted before opting out for various reasons.
But those who did take the field embraced the idea and appeared to enjoy themselves immensely in the carnival atmosphere.
For the record, Patrick Dangerfield's Bolts finished third with one win and two losses, with Eddie Betts' Deadly team last with the same record but an inferior percentage.
Australian Associated Press
