Norm Smith medallist Luke Shuey summoned the stoicism of gutsy cricketer Justin Langer to help march West Coast to victory in the AFL grand final.
Shuey was the obvious choice for best on ground in the Eagles' five-point win over Collingwood, earning 11 of a possible 12 Norm Smith votes.
The Eagles midfielder laid eight tackles, collected a game-high 34 disposals and kicked a vital second-quarter goal.
Brisbane gun Simon Black and St Kilda star Lenny Hayes are the only other players to have managed at least 30 disposals, a goal and eight tackles in a grand final.
Shuey revealed the advice of national cricket coach Langer, who sits on the Eagles' board and has been a long-term supporter of the club, was ringing in his head throughout Saturday.
Langer addressed West Coast players last September.
"I reckon I've watched it seven or eight times this year, it's that good a talk," Shuey said of the 15-minute speech.
"I got the tech heads out the back of our club to put it on the database we access as players.
"He spoke about spirit ... about his story, his career and what drove him as a player.
"When you think about JL as a batsman, the countless hundreds he hit and games he won off his own bat, you probably don't think of that first.
"You think about the fast balls he was copping in the ribs in India and that sort of stuff, gritting his teeth and digging in for a tough hundred.
"It's been part of what we've been doing, probably since that Port Adelaide final last year."
The Eagles copped the equivalent of a bouncer barrage in the first quarter at the MCG, conceding the opening five goals of the game.
"I didn't think we'd get smashed. It's funny, I knew we were going to come back," Shuey said.
"We've been in that position multiple times this year."
Saturday's two medals capped a rollercoaster finals campaign for Shuey.
The 28-year-old and partner Dani welcomed their first child, Oliver, into the world earlier this month.
"She's been as big a part of this as anyone for me and I wish they were here," he said.
Shuey, among the 12 Eagles who bounced back from a horrible grand-final loss in 2015 to become premiership players, was relatively quiet in weeks one and three of the finals.
"I haven't had a great finals ... I've probably been below where I want to be," he admitted.
"The other guys have carried a fair load and I haven't probably carried my fair share."
Coach Adam Simpson swiftly rubbished that notion, heaping praise on Shuey.
NORM SMITH MEDAL VOTING
11 - Luke Shuey (3,3,3,2) 7 - Taylor Adams (3,2,2) 4 - Dom Sheed (2,1,1) 1 - Tom Langdon (1) 1 - Jeremy McGovern (1)
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