For Meryl Hayden, Essendon represents a whole lot more than just a Footy Club.

It’s a lifetime of belonging and passion for the devoted 72-year-old, who hasn’t let several changes in location and a recent cancer battle deter her from cheering on her beloved Bombers in every capacity she can.

All the way from Wagga Wagga, Meryl’s story as a Don – in her own words:

The origins of support

Well, I'm currently 72 years of age and I started barracking for Essendon when I was in grade five. 

The reason I started barracking for Essendon was because two local fellas in our area, Charlie and Ian Payne were playing for Essendon, so that's what got me into the Club – my dad was always a bit of a football follower as well, he was a shift worker and mum and I used to get the scores for him over the radio, stuff like that.

I've been around the traps. I was born in Terang, then I moved to Melbourne, then I moved to Cairns for three years, back to Melbourne, Wangaratta in recent times and then here in Wagga after my cancer diagnosis.

Glory days

It was around the 2000’s, you know, when we were really, really a top club and I was living in Melbourne at the time and we used to go to everything.

We’d always go to the social club at Windy Hill where all the players would come back after the game, we'd have a meal there. In the early times, my husband and I sponsored Chris Heffernan because he came from Terang. 

So with that, we were really lucky to be able to access a lot of functions as a sponsor, we went to the official dinner after we won the Grand Final, which was absolutely amazing. All of that time, just participating, following, being involved, I felt really, really good about being a supporter. I always have, but those times were just amazing. 

People don't realise the sort of feeling that you have when you're winning and being involved in that. It’d get you through the week, going to work on Monday and already looking forward to the next weekend with the boys out there, it's just an amazing, amazing feeling. 

Staying involved 

I really feel as though I'm a part of Essendon because I've been with the Club for so long and it's just second nature to me now.

I read everything I can and I listen to whatever I can. Up here in New South Wales, we don't get as much information on AFL apart from Greater Western Sydney and the Swans, so I do really miss all of that.

It makes it really hard for me to travel to a game and get back at a convenient time on the train - sometimes I have to get the train back to either Wangaratta or to Wagga where I am now just because of the scheduling of games these days.

Getting around the kids

It's really important for me to keep tabs on everything and listen to what's going on, I just love the fact that we’ve got all these young players that are coming through now. 

Sometimes you might call it a bit of serendipity, where unfortunately, where one of our great players is injured and then a young one comes in and can actually show his form, show who he is – I think that's really great. 

I just love these young fellas coming forward. I just feel like we're going to be great in the next couple of years if these kids can continue to sort of get this experience. 

Family ties

My mum passed away three years ago, she was almost 94. Right up until about two years before that, she would come to the footy with me if it was convenient because I used to have two reserved seats. 

Well and truly into her 80’s, she would still come to the football with me whenever she was available, whenever she came to Melbourne and she loved it. 

She would sit at home and sit on her lounge chair, she would have the radio on it and she'd listen to it and still wear her scarf from home. Anthony McDonald-Tipungwuti was obviously her favourite player as well.

I've got one son, who’s an Essendon supporter – he’s got three children himself. 

Those children are eight, 10, and now one's just turned 13, they've been members ever since they were born. I was the one who put them in as members, they all live on the Sunshine Coast and we were actually supposed to go to the Gold Coast game together, the first game of the year when it was cancelled. 

My husband would play footy one day and if Essendon played the next day, we'd travel from Terang to Melbourne for the footy and back again. I can remember lining up at the Windy Hill gates so that we could get in, get on one of the wooden seats on the wing. 

The best. 

It was all revolving around footy because we had that common interest as well too. We both barrack for Essendon. When we went to the footy and we lost, we would travel two and a half hours home and wouldn't say one word, we’d be that disappointed. 

We had nothing to talk about, but if we won, we talked about it all the way home. it was really, really great, you know, having that there so that the two of us had that really, really strong connection with the Club.  

The inaugural Anzac Day clash, other fond memories

I've had the same seats (at Marvel Stadium) since it's opened, the home and away reserved seats. 

Like I’ve said, there's only two Anzac Day games that I've missed. I can remember that very first one where we were over on the Ponsford Stand and it was just so, so exciting. 

There was a Collingwood lady in front of me and when it the siren went and it was a draw, she hugged me and she said, never mind, dear.

I was thinking ‘oh, no.’ I must have been too excited and up and down through that one.

I was also at Waverley when the lights went out (against the Saints in 1996), I remember having to come back the following week on a Tuesday night - people in Melbourne wouldn't even travel to Waverley with the old wet, windy conditions. 

It was such a big area with lots and lots of cars and, you know, it had no public transport so people had to drive. When we got to head in for those games that were just ‘at the gate’, it was really, really great because we could sit on those wooden seats around the wing and just a little bit up where the cheer squad used to be.

In those days, you could wander around and do whatever.

Our son used to go leave us and sit in with the cheer squad or sit next to them. It made him feel like he was a part of it even more, it just made him really feel good. You never really worried that something might happen, but you wouldn't dare do anything now like that.  

The facilities are so, so much better at the games these days. You know, I can remember sitting at night time and I'd have a hat and coat and I felt like I had icicles dripping out of my nose.

Favourites 

I’ve always loved James Hird. He was my favourite. Matthew Lloyd, he and I share the same birthday - once upon a time, they would send out birthday cards to members and the time when he was Captain, I got one from him and I took it to work and I told everyone, look, he even remembers that we share the same day. 

I even remember getting to toss the coin at the ‘G ahead of a Hawthorn game. It was before the Commonwealth Games because the members’ and the other stand were all pulled down.  

I got to be able to go into the rooms and I'd never been into the rooms before, so that was really great. I think Dean Solomon kicked the winning goal for us too.

I came back to Melbourne from Cairns (during the supplements saga) and I was going to the footy every week. I'd have my colours and everything on for the tram rides, and people were really, really nasty. You know, it was always snide remarks or actions.

I supported them every game when we didn't have a real team as such. That was really, really hard going, but I turned up every week. You’ve just got to keep on keeping on.

The friendships 

I've got a good friend (Sue) who I met at the footy. She sits two seats away from me and we've become friends in the last 30 years. Because of the footy, we've travelled interstate, we've flown, we've trained it, we’ve driven, we've bussed it. We've done everything. 

It's the best isn't it, how clubs can just like bring people together like that. We've had some really, really good people around us the whole time and we've been friends with them and watched their kids grow up. It’s really nice. 

Football gives you a really, really strong interest together. Most people don't see them any other time, but when we're at the footy we're best friends. 

It’s just that these people go to the footy all the time and I don't even know a lot of them, but it's just an amazing, magical place to be.