Carter's full house of premiership success with Golden Square

Christian Carter completed the BFNL set on Saturday when his Bulldogs held off Sandhurst by six points in a thrilling grand final.

He also emulated the feats of his older brother, Nick, by coaching the Dogs to a flag.

"They're all pretty special, but this one is significant when you're guiding a group,'' Carter said of his premiership success with the Bulldogs.

"I have an overwhelming sense of pride. We worked so hard and we've been on a journey, so to finally get over the line is just amazing."

Carter said the pain of missing out on a grand final berth last year by less than a kick had played a key role in Square's success in 2023.

"We've built and built to set up a game plan that can compete in finals,'' Carter said.

"Last year we were so close and that hurt. It's been a huge driving factor this year."

The unfinished business for the Dogs was at the forefront of their thoughts as they went into the final quarter of the grand final trailing Sandhurst by four points.

The Dragons had all the momentum after a big finish to the third quarter.

"We fell away in the stoppages in the third quarter and we let (Sandhurst's) Sam Conforti and Noah Walsh get too much of the ball,'' Carter said.

"We needed to tighten up around the stoppages and cut off their outlets.

"We felt if we could get more speed on the game in the last quarter we could get the ball inside 50 and take our opportunities. That's what we did."

While the Dogs led for much of the final quarter, they never felt safe until the final siren sounded.

"Full credit to Sandhurst, they're a bloody good side,'' Carter said.

"After they played a cut-throat preliminary final last week on a hot day, we thought we'd be able to outrun them today.

"They just bored in, competed and kept coming at us. I know they'll be hurting, but they should be mighty proud of their efforts."

When Carter captained Golden Square to the 2009 premiership, a young Jack Geary was a teenager making his way in senior footy.

Some 14 years later, Geary earned his sixth BFNL premiership medal and his third Nalder Medal for the best player on the ground in the grand final.

"I had a conversation with Jack this morning and told him that there's no better big game player in this league than him,'' Carter said of Geary.

"He's been doubting himself a bit lately, so I started him in the middle because I thought this was his time. Just like he's done his entire career he responded.

"The only thing missing from his CV was to captain a premiership and he's done it now."

Much like Geary, Carter bleeds blue and gold.

That's why lifting the Bendigo Advertiser Cup meant so much to the coach.

"I've been at this club all my life and this is the icing on the cake,'' Carter said.

"It's been too long since Golden Square was at the top of the mountain.

"We'd played in one grand final in 10 years before today and I'm proud that we've been able to get there with this group.

"The exciting thing is there's a lot more to come. These kids are special and we want to keep this group together and win a couple more."

READ MORE: Live blog of BFNL grand final day

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