By Jayden Adolph
Glen Waverley headed into Round 10 hopeful of coming away with two wins against Scoresby, as they look to fight off relegation in Division Three this season.
However, the day was rocked with an announcement pre-game, with club champion Jesse Dunne advising the playing group he has made the decision to call time on his football career.
Dunne wore the blue and gold for the final time last weekend kicking two goals in the Reserves, and the script was written perfectly, kicking the final goal of the match to seal the deal against the Magpies.
“The day was a lot more emotional than what I thought, I had no idea what to expect leading into the day. I kept it quiet, as I didn’t want to make a huge fuss about it. The club were fantastic, and I sprung the decision on them early Saturday morning and they still gave me an amazing farewell,” said Dunne.
Dunne signed with Glen Waverley in the pre-season of 2014, led by then coach Ryan Flack. The club was struggling results-wise, and Dunne was immediately appointed captain of the club in his first season at Central Reserve.
“I came into the club wanting to make change. I wanted to make the club a better place,
“At my first Hawks training session, they were five players there.”
Since 2014, Jesse Dunne has been a bull for the Hawks down-back, while also occasionally playing up the ground on the wing.
Jesse eventually became the club’s longest-serving captain and in 2018 he captained Glen Waverley in their Grand Final loss to Whitehorse.
“2018 was a great year, even though we lost. We won 16 games straight, I’m sure that’s a club record and the entire league was talking about us,
“I’ve never regretted joining this club. It has not only made me a better footballer, but a better person,
“It’s been great to see the likes of Gav Cruse, Mitch Potts, Josh McMillan and Curt Meachen become regular senior footballers in my time, they’ve also become some of my closest friends – which is special.”
Within the last nine seasons, Dunne has walked away with four Team of the Year honours and two Glen Waverley Players’ Player Awards. None of these accolades are stand-out memories for Jesse though.
“I honestly think Round Three of 2015, the club hadn’t won a match for over 600 days, and we beat Coldstream at Home, the looks on the faces of Gary Hocking, Steve Potts and everyone made it so special,
“The feeling after the game was unreal and that’s when I realized that this place means so much to so many people, after that it meant the exact same to me.
“Some people would mention premierships when it comes to their favourite moment, but that is number one for me.”
Current Glen Waverley Captain and close friend of Jesse’s Mitch Potts has played every season with Jesse at the club and their mate-ship and respect for one another is unbreakable.
“My initial thoughts on Jesse’s retirement, I was emotional and quite shocked. He’s a unique character, he will leave a massive hole at the club that will not be filled,
“He has been the most influential person at the club for a long time. The fact he walked into the place when most players on the list left prior to him joining, he came in as captain straight away and that is a perfect example of the amazing character of the man.’
“Jesse sits in the top three greatest players I’ve ever played with and is probably the most highly regarded player in the club for a while.”
