2025 will go down as a day to remember in Mansfield sporting folklore.
Though the shire has a long history of outperforming its relatively small size, it is still a very big deal when two brothers simultaneously sign contracts with the Collingwood Football Club, arguably the biggest and most prestigious of sporting clubs on the continent.
That's exactly what Harry (21) and Max (18) Mahoney did on Saturday.
The two Mahoney boys have become the latest to come off the shire’s remarkable production line of sporting talent.
Harry, who spent the second half of the 2024 season playing for Collingwood’s VFL side, is a quick and skillful wingman who is likely to cause his opposition dizzy spells when he returns to action with the team at the start of this season.
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Max, who has been commuting to Melbourne two or three times a week to train with the team since October is set to move to Melbourne to combine his footy with University.
As a player he is said to have a remarkable presence on the field for his young age, a big bodied onballer with a high footy IQ, he has a hunger for the ball and his aggression will see he gets lots of it.
“Work hard,” said Bo Christopher, President of Mansfield Football Club, a message for the Mahoney boys and the 400 plus kids coming through the Mansfield Football Club Junior program.
"Work hard and anything is possible.
“These boys have been with the Mansfield Football Club since Auskick.
“In every age group and team they've been involved with, they've been amongst the hardest working.
“The club is so pleased to see young guys get the chance to live their dream, it's what it is all about.
“If our young players are willing to work hard we will push them on to be the best they can be.
“Coming through in a small country town, it just shows it can happen.
"We are so proud of the boys and we hope they both have a great season at VFL level.
"And from there, who knows?"
While this day would have been a matter of great pride for the club no matter what family the boys came from, it is undeniably heartwarming that they are Mahoneys.
Their father, Billy played over 250 games in an Eagles guernsey and their mother, Cath played A-grade netball for the club.
Both are still heavily involved with the club to this day.
The boys sisters, Meg and Ava, both play netball for the club at A-grade and U17 respectively.
Last year their cousin Brett, who has himself represented Collingwood at VFL level, won the Mansfield Football Club’s Best and Fairest.
Harry and Max have a large opportunity in their hands and they are just the type of boys to make the most of the exposure this move to the VFL gives them.
Fortunately, the lads will remain able to return home to play with the Eagles when the Magpies have the bye next season.
