Koroit skipper Liam Hoy preparing to play 150th Hampden league game

Hoy, who plays his 150^th senior Hampden league game on Saturday against Hamilton Kangaroos, has won six premierships since making his senior debut for Warrnambool in 2012 as a 16-year-old.

He played in two flags with the Blues (2012, '13) before crossing to the Saints in 2017 where he's featured in their past four grand final wins (2017, '18, '19, '22).

Remarkably, he has played in every Hampden league grand final since his debut, except for 2016 when he had a stint playing in Noosa.

The ever-humble Hoy is adamant he hasn't taken any of the success for granted despite its frequency.

"They (premierships) are all extremely hard," he told The Standard.

"It's amazing what you can achieve when no one cares who gets the credit.

"(I've) certainly been in the right place at the right time and you have to be surrounded by good people and lucky enough I've been surrounded by great people and they've driven good standards and I've certainly never ever taken one for granted at any stage.

Some of those "great people" and their impact on Hoy have not been forgotten by the midfielder.

He lists former Blues champions Josh Walters and Dustin McCorkell as role models during his early days, as well as his father Graham, who taught him about "respect and gratitude".

At Koroit, he pointed to long-serving current coach Chris McLaren and former senior stars Brett Harrington and Isaac Templeton as people he had learned plenty from.

Hoy, who has recorded 47 games for the Blues and 102 with the Saints, speaks highly of his time with both clubs.

"I'd be nowhere without the foundations that people put in place to help me go forward and it won't be forgotten throughout," he said.

The Saints captain has come a long way since he was handed his first senior jumper by ex-Blue Angus Chirnside as a 16-year-old.

He has been at the helm of the reigning premier since 2021 and relishes being one of many leaders at Victoria Park.

"I enjoy working as a leader and with other leaders around the club," he said.

"There's a big collective of us, it's not a sole role at all so certainly loved working with all the leaders at the club to bring through the next draft of kids and to be fair to the lads they're an amazing bunch of boys.

"They've got great backgrounds, great families, they've got good habits and they all represent the jumper the way it should be."

The Saints have undergone somewhat of a re-build this year, giving more opportunities to youth following the departure of numerous premierships stars.

Unlike a typical rebuild, the second-placed side has refused to bottom-out, with younger players and some quality recruits instrumental.

Hoy loves helping usher in the next generation and predicts a bright future for the club.

"We've just created little goals throughout the year and I've been so proud of the group, just from their buy-in and their effort," he said.

"The enjoyment factor's as high as ever and I can see what the club can do as a whole in all grades. Going forward I think the kids we have coming through are going to generate that next wave of hopefully another run of success.

"To be a small part of their development's been really enjoyable."

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