The Cats have lost a total of eight premierships – including five home and away flags and three pre-season/night series since 1963.
But the long-kicking left-footer said at Skilled Stadium on Tuesday that what happened in the past was now just that – in the past.
“Winning certainly does change the mentality of a few people, but I think the stigma attached is a long time ago – a lot of these guys weren’t born around the 60s and early 70s,” Graham said.
“We’ve got an opportunity to create some new history for our club given our past history.”
“But I think at the end of the day, it’s irrelevant what has happened and (we’re) definitely looking forward to the opportunity Saturday night.”
Graham said being part of winning grand final side – albeit in the pre-season competition – would be one of the finest achievements of his career if the Cats could win the Wizard Cup against the Saints.
“It’d definitely be a highlight. You don’t get a great opportunity to play in a lot of grand finals. Some players don’t get a chance at all in their career (to play in a grand final), so it would rate pretty highly,” Graham said.
Graham also lauded the Cats’ fans, saying that it was a great chance for the supporters to see that the club was ‘on the right track’ for 2004.
“I’m one of 400,000 Geelong supporters around Australia that can’t wait for Saturday night. It’s a great stepping stone for our club, so Saturday night – I can’t wait,” Graham said.
Meanwhile, Graham said that teammate Kent Kingsley’s claim that the 1999 Geelong best and fairest winner was the new Wayne Carey was a tag that was flattering but not quite on the money.
“It was a bit uncalled for I think. It’s nice to get a pat on the back from one of your teammates though,” Graham said with a smile.
