There are a couple of common catch-phrases from other sports which could apply to the West Coast Eagles’ versatile key  position player Adam Hunter.

In the cricket vernacular he’d be determined as an all-rounder.  In  basketball  they’d  refer to him as the ultimate swingman. Regardless of how you look at him, though, Hunter is a valuable component of the West Coast Eagles structure.

The ability to play key positions, either forward or back, is nothing new in Australian football, but to be able to do it as effectively as Hunter is rare. And that capacity to succeed at either end of the ground provides the coaches’ box with a magnificent option.

So many times during the course of the season, including the grand final, Hunter started in defence, yet was swung forward during the match, where he would have a profound influence.

Four times during the season he was thrown forward for four-goal returns – in qualifying round matches against the Kangaroos and Carlton and also in two finals, against the Western Bulldogs and  then  against  Adelaide in the preliminary final. Against the Crows his performance played a considerable part in reversing the fortunes after half-time.

But it was in another match where Hunter probably had the definitive game of his season, in round 10 against Geelong at Skilled Stadium. Early in the first quarter he was shoved into the Cats’ dug-out by Cameron Mooney.

He crashed into the concrete structure, causing nasty facial abrasions and a gash to his head. Hunter was patched up by medical staff and returned to battle,  immediately letting Mooney know he was none-too-happy about the incident.

With West Coast in deep trouble, Hunter was again cast forward as the club clawed back from a 54-point deficit mid-way through the third term. At the end of a remarkable surge to victory, the archetypal utility player gained possession about 35 metres from goal and, tumbling backwards, managed to get boot to ball to kick the winning goal. There were many instances during the 2006 campaign where Hunter had a profound effect, but probably none more than that day where both his courage and contribution were inspiring.

In the grand final, Hunter initially stood Barry Hall and also spent time on Michael O’Loughlin when he was not playing forward and was a key player throughout the day; a day he obviously will never forget.

“It was a mixture of excitement and relief,” Hunter said of the emotions which gripped him as the final siren resonated around the MCG. “It was a dream come true and when that siren went it was just surreal. It was a feeling of excitement, happiness and fulfillment. It is starting to sink in a bit more now.

“We watched the game on the plane on the way home, which was pretty special. I am sure at some stage we will sit down and have a look at it as a group.

“Everyone  seems  to  ask  the  question,  and I give them the same answer,” he added on the poser of his  preferred  position.  “I  grew up playing centre half-forward and full-forward in juniors and when I got to the Eagles they decided to send me down back, just to try to learn a bit more about playing forward.

“I enjoyed it down there and that is where I have played most of my career. Lately I have had a few opportunities to push forward and I enjoy that as well. I guess you get a sense of freedom playing forward and that’s great.

“It has taken all my life I guess. It is something you grow up dreaming about and trying to achieve the ultimate. I didn’t realise how close I came to leaving a few years ago (when the Western Bulldogs made a pitch to recruit him). I grew up supporting the Eagles, I love the Eagles and this is where I wanted to play.

“After what we had done earlier in the year, we knew we had a fantastic work rate and if we maintained that we would run over the top of Adelaide – and we did,” Hunter offered on the preliminary final triumph, the team recovering from close to a four-goal half-time deficit.

While Hunter started the season strongly and ended it in a similar fashion, there was a period of uncertainty when he hurt his knee in the round 16 loss to Collingwood.  He  attributes his capacity to return as strongly as he did to the club’s sports science team.

“I always hoped to get back for round 21 and to play a couple of games before finals,” he said. “With the fitness staff we’ve got at the club, Glenn Stewart and Stuart Cormack, they really prepared me well off the ground to come back as fit as I could be and I ended up getting back a bit earlier than expected.

“Chris Egan fell  across  me.  It  was  just  one of those freak accidents, I did my medial ligament. I did one in my second year so  I pretty much knew straight away what I had done. I tried to convince myself that I hadn’t but I had to come off.

“To start with I was just thinking about how bad it was and hoping that there wasn’t any cruciate damage which can happen with an injury like that. There is always that chance when you do your medial.”

That injury was far from Hunter’s mind after the premiership as he basked in the spoils of the ultimate success.