Legacies are defined by what teams and players achieve, or fail to achieve, in September.
The stakes are higher. Every effort is amplified. Every mistake is compounded. Every victory is glorified. Losses are rarely forgiven.
With the first week of finals upon us, let's take a look at some of the most memorable matches this corresponding point of the season has blessed footy fans with in recent memory.
The eight best first-week finals of the last decade:
4Port Adelaide Power v West Coast Eagles, 2017 Elimination Final
The only match on this list to go to extra time, the elimination final between the Eagles and Power in 2017, was loaded with drama.
On their home deck, Port Adelaide were wasteful in front of goal, with leaders Charlie Dixon (3.6) and Travis Boak (0.3) the biggest culprits. Stars Ollie Wines and Robbie Gray did their best to drag the Alberton natives over the line, but this match was about the heroics of one man, Luke Shuey.
In a precursor to his monumental, Norm Smith medal-winning heroics in the Grand Final the following year, the inspirational leader registered 32 disposals, two goals, 11 tackles, and six clearances, but it is his clutch, after-the-siren winner that will live long in the memory of Eagles faithful.
As the second extra time period ticked down, Port held a four-point lead until, now infamously, a Jared Polec tackle, in his own defensive 50, slipped high. It gifted Shuey a shot at goal and the chance to snatch victory. The ensuing set shot never looked like missing, and the Eagles progressed.
The validity of the free kick is still debated to this day, with allegations of "ducking and dogging" surrounding the famous victory. One thing is for certain - this match was a classic.
