AFL grand final: Meet Western Bulldogs Bunbury superfan Cameron Payne in pursuit of glory

When the ball is bounced in Saturday’s grand final at Optus Stadium, you’ll be hard-pressed to find anyone in Bunbury more invested than Cameron Payne. Mr Payne, a die-hard Western Bulldogs fan, will be watching on from home as his side faces Melbourne in just their second grand final in his lifetime. He said while he was devastated to miss out on one of the rare tickets to the game, he’s more focused on how his team fares in pursuit of a third AFL premiership. “It definitely hurt,” Mr Payne said. “I actually got someone else to be online because I was working at the time and had my fingers crossed, but no luck. “I always get nervous, especially in the week leading up to it. “I’ve got some family friends coming over, so they’ll be watching with me, or staying away from me, maybe, depending on the result. “I was a footy fan and I grew up with mates that loved footy and I thought ‘I better go for a side’ and I liked dogs, so I thought I’d stick with them. “The passion grew from there.” He has a Bulldogs doona cover, a framed picture of Bob Murphy and memorabilia from their most recent premiership, but there’s a special place on his car’s number plate reserved for his all-time favourite: 2016 grand final hero Dale Morris. But as far as Saturday’s game goes, Mr Payne thinks it’ll be a Bulldogs fan-favourite who will break the game open. “We’re probably going in as slight underdogs,” he said. “Dogs-wise I think Bailey Smith will have a real impact.”