A picturesque North Hobart Oval setting helped launch Tasmania's first VFL match as a club on Saturday.
The historic fixture saw Tassie host Coburg for Round 1, with a sell-out 10,500 strong crowd marching through the gates to see their new team take to the field for the first time.
With the expectations of the state on their shoulders, the Devils' inaugural players didn't disappoint as they claimed a famous 96-79 victory over the Burgers.
Key forward and former Adelaide rookie Sam Siggins secured a piece of Tasmanian history as he booted the club's first ever VFL goal thanks to a set shot finish. The 31-year-old backed it up later in the term with his second as the Devils won their first quarter of football 27-22.
Draped in its famous colours of green, gold and red, Tassie as both a club and a state were shining on Saturday afternoon.
Following Seven's broadcast of the match, commentator and former Melbourne star Russell Robertson said the victory was an emotional moment for those that call the Apple Isle home.
"I have a tear in my eye JD, a tear in my eye for my boys," he said.
"It has been a long time coming just for this VFL start.
"As we hear that song for the first time, I feel like we are going to hear that a few times this year watching the way they went about it today. Coburg, they are no easy beats.
"There have been a lot of naysayers, especially those over here on the mainland. Really trying to throw grenades into what we are doing down there, whether it be the stadium, people showing up, whether players actually wanting to go down there to play in the AFL and stay in Tasmania and live.
"I tell you what, you get a crowd like (today), you got passion like that and some really good play; that was awesome."
Tasmania bulky midfielder-forward Jed Hagan was arguably best-on-ground with with 17 disposals, eight tackles, three clearances while kicking 4.3.
