A grand final selection snub, homesickness, trade rejection and a battle with cancer defined the early years of Bobby Hill’s AFL career, but the livewire now has both a premiership medal and a Norm Smith Medal hanging around his neck.
Every grand final delivers heartwarming personal stories and Hill’s triumph over adversity may be the most special out of Collingwood’s four-point win on Saturday.
The 23-year-old was scintillating as the Magpies and Lions clashed in front of a 100,024-strong crowd at the MCG, snaring a game-high four goals from 18 touches and climbing on the shoulders of Lincoln McCarthy to take a spectacular grab.
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“I’d like to thank Brisbane for a great game. You were a hard opponent all year. Thank you,” Hill said after Collingwood’s 12.18 (90) to 13.8 (86) win.
“To everyone at the Collingwood Football Club, thank you for obviously making me and my family welcome here.
“To the Collingwood faithful, we love you guys.
“Up the Pies!”
Two days out from the 2019 grand final, Hill was dealt devastating news when then-Giants coach Leon Cameron axed the goalsneak.
Greater Western Sydney’s grand final appearance turned out to be so dismal that, when all was said and done, the youngster may have counted himself lucky; the Tigers belted the Giants by 89 points.
But he had still been stripped of an opportunity to run onto the MCG on grand final day.
The Victorian battled with life in Sydney and sought a trade to Essendon in 2021, hoping to be closer to two of his cousins, St Kilda’s Bradley Hill and Essendon’s Courtney Ugle, who plays in the Bombers’ VFLW side.
Adding to the difficulty of the situation was Hill’s partner was about to give birth to the couple’s first child.
But the Giants refused to let him go, holding him to the final year of his contract and leaving him deflated.
Seven months later, he was confronted by a shattering diagnosis. At the age of just 22, he was told he had testicular cancer.
He underwent surgery in June last year and didn’t play another game for the Giants, before securing a trade to Victoria on his second attempt in 12 months.
Not only did his move to Victoria unite him with Bradley Hill and Ugle, landing at Collingwood united him with another cousin in Leon Davis, the Magpies great who returned to the club in a full-time capacity last year, taking on a job in the cultural space.
Hill has since turned in a career-best season, tallying 33 goals including his bag of four in Saturday’s decider.
Richmond legend Matthew Richardson had towering praise for the excitement machine on the Seven broadcast.
“One of the great games by a small forward in a grand final,” Richardson said.
Hill won the Norm Smith Medal by a significant margin, racking up 15 votes as he beat runner-up Keidean Coleman (five) to the top gong.
Nick Daicos (four votes), Tom Mitchell (three), Jack Crisp (two) and Scott Pendlebury (one) rounded out the votes.
When West Coast and Carlton champion Chris Judd announced Hill as the Norm Smith Medal winner, the MCG crowd erupted and his teammates swamped him.