Last week, the Mid Gippsland Football Netball League abandoned the 2021 season for its senior grades.

A vote was put to all 13 member clubs at a meeting last Tuesday, and a majority voted in favour of abandoning.

Of the top six senior football teams who would have played finals, four voted against the recommendation in hopes restrictions would lift in the coming weeks.

Hill End FNC was one club that voted against abandoning, after the seniors were awarded the minor premiership for finishing on top of the ladder.

“It feels pretty disappointing, I think we all feel the same way in that it just feels unfinished,” Hill End captain Liam Fitzpatrick said.

When voting against the recommendation, Hill End president Simone Clymo said she wanted to give the players something to look forward to after a tough year.

“The boys have trained hard and put a lot into the last couple of years and it would’ve been nice to at least have a go at winning the grand final after 40 years since we’ve won one,” Clymo said.

Since coming runner-up in the 2019 premiership against Yallourn-Yallourn North, Hill End has seen more supporters come back to the side.

“When we lost the grand final, that night we had about 2000 people crammed into these rooms, the fans were fantastic and we’ve just built from there and built a culture where people want to be,” coach Mike Santo said.

The MGFNL is structured so that member clubs vote on decisions regarding the league, rather than by elected officials.

The seniors coach said it was frustrating, but the vote was ultimately out of their control.

“We feel like we’re a little bit more invested in it obviously because we’re in that position to continue whereas some of those other teams weren’t going to play another game this season,” Santo said.

When the call was made on the season, the Rovers got together for a final training session where they reflected on their successes.

The Rovers lost only one game against Fish Creek by a goal, 9.4-58 to 7.10-52.

“It all feels like a long time ago now…the way we came together especially in the second half of the season, I think we were really hitting our stride and we played some really good footy,” Fitzpatrick said.

Santo said a highlight was seeing the younger players develop over the short season, Luke Tumino, Bailey Paul, and Nathan Belford were particularly strong.

“The way they developed week in week out and just got better and better as the season went on was super encouraging,” Santo said.

An unforgettable match was against Morwell East, where they went in undermanned and undefeated.

“It felt like the last quarter went on for an hour and a half, but every week was great being out here and spending time with these lads,” Santo said.