Paul Douglas was only a kid of eight when his father Terry handed him a grey satchel of old 6x4 black and white images of the 1972 Grand Final.

That was thirty-five years ago, after Sir Wayne Harmes famously hammered the Sherrin Ken Sheldon’s way in that match-winning play of the Grand Final of ’79.

Douglas was at the MCG for that one, when the great man in the No.37 guernsey went whack - “and from well inside the boundary line” as he puts it.

In reflecting now on his father’s precious gift, Douglas understood the timing of it all. As he said, “Dad thought I was at that age when I could appreciate something like that”.

“I’ve been a lifelong Carlton fan and my father gave these photos to me after the ’79 Grand Final,” Douglas said.

“He told me they were given to him by a friend of his, a newspaper photographer. He said to me ‘These are photos you may not ever get to see yourself, treasure them for life’.”

The 1972 Grand Final victory, masterminded by then Captain-Coach John Nicholls, saw Carlton overcome Richmond with a record winning scoreline for any Grand Final before or since – 28.9 (177).

This was the day Alex Jesaulenko booted seven goals from full-forward, Robert Walls six from centre half-forward and “Big Nick” six of his own from a forward pocket, in what was a 50-goal shootout with a much-despised foe.

Douglas’s images capture pivotal moments of that one Saturday in October (by virtue of the two teams’ semi-final tie at VFL Park) – from “Big Nick” leading them out through to the euphoric team scenes in the immediate aftermath of the final bell.

Douglas has always kept his photos close, and you can tell too because they’re all in pristine condition.

But this week the boy from Calignee (not far from “Puss” Graham’s old digs) generously saw fit to avail them for inclusion in the football club’s digital archive, because he believed they told a story well worth retelling.

So let the pictures retell the story.