It wouldn't be Grand Final week without a fitness doubt over a star player.
Ashley Browne of AFL.com.au revisits some of the great Grand Final week fitness tests.
Harry Unglik spent most of Grand Final week in 1999 sweating buckets.
Now an AFL medical commissioner, Unglik was North Melbourne's club doctor at the time and he was tasked with determining whether gun midfielder Anthony Stevens was any chance for the Grand Final, against Carlton.
On the surface he appeared no chance. The gritty midfielder had torn several ligaments and suffered a hairline fracture of his ankle during the Kangaroos’ preliminary final win over the Brisbane Lions.
Unglik said it was a three-to-four week injury at any other time, but Stevens was a fighter and Unglik liked a challenge.
Mick Malthouse's failed Grand Final fitness test
So they set about an exhaustive rehabilitation program, which was required to end with one goal in mind.
"(North coach) Denis (Pagan) told us he had to be able to train for 10 minutes on the Thursday. If he could do that, he'd be picked in the side," Unglik told the AFL Record.
Stevens underwent treatment three times a day, which included sessions walking in shallow water at the beach. Between treatments he used crutches to get around and he spent as much time as could on his couch with his foot immobilised.
By Thursday, much of the swelling had gone down and after a local anesthetic, he was able to train for just long enough to convince Pagan to pick him in the team to play the Blues.
"I was in the middle of the ground as he trained and let me tell you, I was sweating," Unglik said.
It was an equally anxious time for the North medical and conditioning time as the game got underway two days later. But Stevens was a champion and he picked up nine touches in an influential opening quarter.
However, early in the second quarter he took himself from the ground amid fears he had hurt his ankle again. That prompted Pagan to pick up the phone, call Unglik on the bench and give him an earful for allowing himself to be 'conned' by Stevens.
But as it turned out, Stevens had gone to tackle a Carlton player and had torn his pectoral muscle off the bone. He had to be strapped and jabbed again and he returned to the ground in the third quarter, but could only manage 10 more minutes before he was done for the day.
"He actually made an excellent recovery," Unglik recalled. "Anthony was just fantastic. He did everything we asked of him and if he hadn’t torn the ‘pec’ muscle he would have played the entire game.
"We did it knowing it was mainly ligament damage and that it would heal. It was mainly about pain management and was a matter of protecting it with strapping. And it worked."
A prized photo hangs on the wall of Unglik's surgery in Melbourne’s CBD. Taken after the Grand Final, it features Stevens, wearing his premiership medal, giving Unglik a kiss on the cheek.
"You get judged by your success and if you make the wrongs decisions, you don’t last long in footy clubs," Unglik said. "If calculated risks come off you build your reputation and if they don’t, you just swallow your pride."
