2019 was a season to remember for Harrow-Balmoral.
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The club had 10 football or netball sides make the Horsham District Football Netball League finals, with three football sides going on to win the premiership.
In a show of the football department's strength from top to bottom, Harrow-Balmoral's under-17s, reserves and seniors all won grand finals by more than 50 points.
It was just the second time in the Horsham District league's history that a club had won those three football flags on the same day.
Since junior football was formally added to the Horsham District league in 1998, only Kalkee in 2010 can lay claim to the same accomplishment.
Quite frankly, Harrow-Balmoral's senior side was dominant in 2019. They finished the season undefeated and with a monster percentage of 405.97.
In the grand final, Harrow-Balmoral defeated Noradjuha-Quantong by 91 points. It was the fourth-largest margin of victory in a Horsham District league grand final since 1948.
It is eclipsed only by Kalkee's 112 point win against Harrow-Balmoral in 2010, the Kee's 102-point victory against Laharum in 1978, and in 1951 when the now-disbanded College secured a 101 point win against St Michaels.
The side simply got stronger as the season wore on. After the bye in round 12, the Southern Roos won their final seven games of the season by an average margin of 141 points.
Without the services of best and fairest winner Eric Guthrie, they dismantled Laharum in round 16 to the tune of 312 points - the biggest winning margin in the Horsham District league since 2009.
Head coach Nick Pekin said it was a special side destined for greatness.
"I've never been involved with such a tight-knit group," Pekin said.
"From a coaching point of view, this is one of the best sides I've ever been involved in.
"We've got a core group of guys here that can really achieve something special.
"Horsham did it; they won 10 in a row. There's no reason why Harrow-Balmoral can't keep winning premierships."
What makes the side's dominance even more incredible is that most of the team were homegrown Southern Roos.
Though the senior football team is historically regarded as the barometer of a club's success, the Southern Roos have set up about changing that notion.
Making the grand final day that little bit sweeter was a long-awaited premiership win for Harrow-Balmoral's reserves side.
The reserves went undefeated in 2018 all the way through to the grand final before a shock loss to Jeparit-Rainbow saw the premiership cup slip from their grasp.
It was a similar story in 2015, when the side had lost just two games in the year before losing to Kalkee in the grand final.
This season, however, it all went according to the script.
The reserves were too strong in the grand final, handsomely defeating challengers Natimuk United by 57 points.
"I think it had a lot to do with everyone buying in right from the start," reserves coach Nathan Neumann said. "We had a few blokes that played in the losing grand final, and everyone was just desperate to work in the same direction."
Neumann said the strength of the club from top to bottom contributed to the reserves side's success.
"It definitely came from the top and Nick Pekin. Being the head coach, he definitely instilled that hard work. It was a whole club-wide initiative," Neumann said.
"It stemmed right through from seniors into the reserves and even the 17s.
"It was incredible. Having three footy sides and a lot of netball teams involved right through to preliminary final weekend, it was a really exciting time around the club."
Pekin said ensuring the success of the whole club, not just the senior side, was his goal since taking on the head coaching job at the end of the 2017 season.
"As a club, we pride ourselves on the little things, and that's very much a broad term to use," he said.
"It covers a lot of bases. If you do the little things right, it goes a long way to winning a game of football. We've put that in place right from the start.
"It's been my goal ever since coming to Harrow - to have the reserves, seniors and 17s win on the day. It's a very proud moment for the club.
"(Club president) Rosemary Langley should be very proud of what they have achieved throughout the year."
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