NEVER before has interchange card No.9 been so warmly received. Ditto the thing that Steve Menzies swapped it for soon after.
After looking like he would be forced to watch the final moments of his final NRL match from the sidelines, Menzies took his headgear out of his bag - after clearly having given up on a return - took the card and promptly swapped it for a football.
And with his first touch in his second stint on the field, Menzies plucked the ball from winger Michael Robertson to prove that not only do nice guys finish first, they score tries as well; an ornamental moment for an ornamental player. And so the game had a moment to hang its hat, or in this case headgear, on.
"I can't really remember it," Menzies said.
"I passed to 'Rob' and I thought he was going to score himself, and no one has scored four times, and he gave up his bit of history himself and flicked it back to me. I always dreamed I would score one in a grand final."
And in his last game for Manly. Or possibly his last game. After that, Menzies revealed a touch of the Farnhams about this retirement thing - despite signing for Bradford, the World Club Challenge might give him one more tour.
"I'll see how I'm feeling. It will be nice to come back and play a game," he said.
It was clear from very early on that Menzies was going to get his fairytale.
Like any true star, he arrived fashionably late, but had heads turning immediately.
Menzies had a direct involvement in the Sea Eagles' first try, which came only five minutes after he came on. A Menzies offload forced six more tackles for the Sea Eagles in the opposing quarter. They only needed four with hooker Matt Ballin scoring.
It's said there's no room for fairytales in this game, but heartache was always going to have to make way for a rousing result yesterday. At least someone was going to finish their long and illustrious career atop a winning grand-final podium, amid the likes of Mal Meninga, Royce Simmons and Shane Webcke.
The Bradford-bound Menzies was probably the people's choice, certainly around Sydney. After all, he was equalling the record for first-grade appearances - 349 of the buggers, something only former Western Suburbs and Canterbury five-eighth Terry Lamb can ever brag about.
Matt Geyer, of course, was the heartbreak kid, having to end his career with a loss. He wasn't able to offer much, but neither was his side.
He still showed age has not worn away his pace by running down Robertson late in the game. But his opportunities were few and far between, as was his side's.
"He's what this club's all about," Melbourne prop Brett White said. "He's been here since day one, and he's changed so many people. He's turned a lot of us into really good people. To not send him out the way he deserves, that's what hurts the most."
There were still winners in the Geyer family, even if they didn't realise it last night.
His boys, Cole and Nash, were inconsolable until dad put the situation into perspective.
"They were upset on the field," Geyer said. "I just told them we'll be spending a lot more time together."
That's not to say Geyer didn't shed a tear or two. He said as he left the ground, he thought about turning around to savour the moment.
"The hardest part for me is I can't fix this," Geyer said. "If these boys do, I'll be their No.1 supporter. I'll be on the sideline cheering them on."
Menzies' try wasn't his final play in his final game. A wonderful tackle around the legs was. A try, and a tackle around the bootlaces - appropriate, surely.
Menzies was the final Manly player to accept his premiership ring. Nice guys are last sometimes, but they get the biggest cheer as well.
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