Kevin Moloney told his son if he ever got a call up to Terang Mortlake's senior side, the youngster could expect his father's premiership teammates to come watch.
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A former back pocket who tasted the ultimate Hampden league success with the Bloods in 1979, Kevin said he doubted the moment would arise until James hit a growth spurt about 12 months ago.
And as fate would have it, the 17-year-old will make his senior Terang Mortlake debut on Saturday, the same day as Kevin's 40-year flag reunion.
"It makes me feel pretty old," he said of the occasion. "But I'm very proud of him and it's a great moment. I played for a long time and now he can too."
Kevin can't help but laugh when asked whether he had a similar style to James.
"We didn't have much of that back then," he said.
"He's an onballer or a forward - not much faster than myself, but taller and definitely more talented.
"I've left him to his own devices in terms of football but he's had some great coaches along the way."
First-gamer James will be joined by his nephew Isaac Kenna, who is five months older, playing in his fourth match for the Bloods.
But the family connection to the club runs ever deeper.
James' uncle Kevin Harney won a flag with Terang in 1972.
And his 33-year-old brother Xavier, who now plays for Swan Hill in the Central Murray league, won flags with the Bloods in 2004 and 2008.
"He looked up to his older brother and was always desperate to play for Terang Mortlake," Kevin Moloney said of his son.
But he said while playing for the Bloods was always a family tradition, winning premierships wasn't.
The 63-year-old endured three grand final defeats from 1976-78 at the hands of a ferocious Darryl Salmon-coached Warrnambool outfit before Terang, led by John Turner, edged out Cobden by seven points in 1979.
"It was a massive relief for us," Moloney said of the breakthrough triumph.
"When you lose three in a row, your doubts start to set in. I really thought I might never play in one."
And when the old teammates reunite for lunch ahead of Terang Mortlake's home game under lights against Port Fairy, Moloney will make sure to remind Northern Territory coroner Greg Cavanagh that he "only got a game by default".
Cavanagh, as the story goes, was an emergency until Terang's ruckman, Garry Clark, pulled out with a sore ankle.
"Greg played five minutes in the last quarter to become a premiership player," Moloney joked.
"But he's a lovely man and we're all looking forward to seeing him."
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