In 1991 a plucky St Michaels defeated the more-fancied Quantong by a mere 5 points at City Oval in the Horsham District Football Netball League.

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The reunion celebration held at Coughlin Park was originally slated to be held in 2020 but COVID-19 restrictions forced its postponement.

Around 14 members of the team made it to the event according to Mark O'Beirne - who playing for the Saints in the 1991 grand final won the best on ground medal.

"It was really good," O'Beirne said.

"A few couldn't make it because of where they lived and a couple pulled out because of Corona Virus. The people who were there had a really good time."

On the Friday night the premiership players relived their glory days by watching footage of the match again which had been uploaded to YouTube.

On the Saturday they then had a luncheon with the Horsham Saints' Life Members.

The celebrations coincided with the Horsham Saints round three Wimmera Football Netball League clash with Ararat.

The current Saints wore green and gold 1991 commemorative guernseys in that match which were auctioned off later in the night.

As part of the tribute, Tracey - the wife of the 1991 premiership coach, the late John "Pelican" O'Callaghan - was presented with a framed jumper that was made up of both St Michael's and Horsham Saints' colours.

O'Beirne said the reunion celebrations continued long into the night.

"The last bloke that got home was 3 o'clock in the morning - he actually fell asleep in the trainer's room," O'Beirne laughed.

"He woke up and started walking around and all the alarms went off.

"It was good to catch up with blokes some of whom you haven't seen for twenty years."

Asked what he remembered from the 1991 grand final itself, O'Beirne recalled a match that was played in front of a "massive crowd" on a "beautiful day".

"It was close at half time but then during the third quarter we kicked five or six goals and they might have kicked one," he said.

"The last quarter they came back and got within three points.

"Johnny martin kicked one from the boundary about fifty metres out and put us nine points up and they kicked another one. And the ball went back to the centre and went out to the scoreboard side and the siren went.

"We played really well."

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O'Beirne said that in the previous two matches the sides had played in 1991 Quantong had walked away convincing winners.

He pointed to midfield inclusion Wayne Corbett - from the Hampden League - as a difference maker and talked of how their coach had successfully changed tactics ahead of the decider.

"Pelican on the Thursday night he changed a few positions around," he said.

"They had to play on certain players. So wherever that player went for Quantong our player followed him. So if he went onto the bench our player went to the bench."

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