Slightly less than 12 months after the devastation of being de-listed after four years at the Melbourne Football Club, lively utility player Steven Armstrong could hardly believe his luck.

After being cut by the Dees he  hoped  to find another home through the trade period. Strike one! Then he watched anxiously as the National Draft revealed name after name, but not his. Strike two!

He was treading water, with no sign of a rescue boat when the West Coast Eagles appeared through the fog and threw him a lifeline. It was a step back, onto the club’s rookie list, but at least he had an AFL home. And it was back home, as well.

Armstrong, who cut his teeth at the Perth Football  Club  playing  senior football as a 16 year-old, was drafted by Melbourne with selection 25 in the 2001 National Draft. He began his career strongly, picking up a National Rising Star nomination in round three of 2002 – a week after Chris Judd picked up his gong on debut against Collingwood.

The versatile Armstrong struggled to find his niche in the Melbourne line-up, however, and played only 12 of his 43  games  in  his  last two seasons at the club. Surprisingly, he was culled after being named as  an  emergency for the Dees’ 2005 elimination final against Geelong.

As one opportunity after another slipped past, his options became increasingly limited until West Coast secured him on its rookie list. From there it was a long way back to regular senior football, but Armstrong knew the requirements and was prepared for the battle.

At least, he reasoned, it would be in Perth where he would have the family support that was missing in Melbourne. And he knew he would need to take his first steps towards AFL revival with Perth footy club, an environment which was also familiar to him.

“I  was  just  expecting  12  months   ago   to get another opportunity at another club,” Armstrong said shortly after the grand final, when still coming to terms with premiership glory. “I got that here on the rookie list and 12 months on I have got a medal around my neck, my name on the locker and everything.

“I have spoken to a few of the boys at Melbourne and they are a little bit envious of me at the moment, but they wished me well.

“I was hoping to go in trade week last year, but that got prolonged with a couple of the bigger trades  taking  so  long  to  complete.  At the National Draft there was a slight inkling I might have been going to Sydney, that went past and there was the pre-season draft and the rookie draft. I didn’t know where my fortune was going to lie until I ended up where I am at the moment.

“Being on a senior list for four years and then going to a rookie list after that long, it  sets you back in your future goals. You want to get a house and all that kind of stuff, which you would think you would be able to do after four years. But it really was an opportunity to show what my football career means to me and how hard I am willing to work, to not only get on the senior list, but to play AFL footy again.

“I enjoyed being on the rookie list and vying for my position on the very, very back end. I didn’t notice it being any different. It was more about myself and I suppose Pridda (Matt Priddis) as well, just getting respect from all the other people who are on the senior list as well as the coaching staff. Hopefully we did get a little bit of respect because of the way we went about our training and how we played.

“I knew if I was going to play AFL football there were limited opportunities for people coming off the rookie list and I knew my form had to be up there with Matty Priddis and Mark LeCras who were doing so well. I just had to maintain my form, keep my name up there in the minds of selectors.”

Armstrong was outstanding for the Demons through the midfield – to such an extent that he was later awarded the Butcher Medal as fairest and best despite playing 10 games for West Coast.

His first opportunity came in round 13 against the Western Bulldogs through  a  late  call-up to replace the ill Michael Braun. Although he produced a solid effort, largely off a wing, he lost his place when Braun returned to health the following week.

He won back his position for the round 17 game against Adelaide, lost it again in round 21 against the Dockers, but was then recalled for the last game against Richmond and was retained for the rest of the campaign.

It was in that game against Richmond that he showed his worth as a small forward, not only kicking four goals, but applying great pressure deep in the attacking zone, which caused several turnovers and stoppages  which  were so important to the team cause.

“It was disappointing at the time, but looking back on it now, I came in an hour before the game   against   the   Bulldogs   when   Michael Braun was sick,” Armstrong said of his West Coast debut. “It was a pretty obvious decision that I would be the one to go, even if I did have a good game.

“I knew what I had been through and I just had to repeat it again, go to Perth and play another good game.

“It was pretty important having family around too. It  is  real different  because  you  make a lot of friends in Melbourne, you grow up there from 17 to 21 and it’s like you don’t see any of your school mates, it’s just a big group of friends you make.

“And to come back here, you might not see a lot of your school friends, but to have my two brothers, my sister and my girlfriend and dad here, it’s a big help.”

Armstrong made a habit of kicking important goals. It seemed in the qualifying against Sydney that he had kicked a match-winning major deep in the last quarter, only to see the Swans run the ball forward to kick a late goal which gave them a one-point victory.

But in the grand final a clever snap in the pulsating final minutes was critical to the outcome.

“It did a feel little surreal at the end of the game. It still does,” Armstrong said of his amazing reversal of fortune. “I just need a day by myself where I can just sit back and watch it and really enjoy it."