The mop-haired Essendon captain Dyson Heppell turned 26 on the same dramatic day the Bombers parted ways with performance coach Mark Neeld.
No one was singing Happy Birthday from the rooftops as criticism was hurled at the club from all directions.
Although Heppell's form, apart from one patch against Melbourne, had been excellent, few outside the club had noticed as the losses piled up.
Essendon captain Dyson Heppell.
Photo: AAP
None of that mattered, however, because the challenge facing Heppell was relatively new to him.
It was one of leadership.
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During that week, Heppell, who had only been captain for 31 games, attended a development meeting of first- to third-year players and promised the group the leaders would show the way forward.
Rising star Andy McGrath later told SEN that the skipper apologised for letting them down.
It was classic Heppell, who just said what he felt without over-analysing the moment, and left a positive impression on his impressionable teammates.
He also took it upon himself to drive standards among the group, vocal when the team performed walk-throughs during the week to prepare for the must-win clash with the Cats in round nine.
Days later, with two first-gamers in the team, the pent-up ferocity within Heppell and his teammates hit Geelong with so much force the game was over within a half.
In round 10, Heppell willed his team to a win against Greater Western Sydney with his determination to win centre clearances in the last quarter as the Bombers were challenged.
The external perception around the likeable and friendly Heppell's leadership style suddenly changed.
He had, according to external observers, stood up and shown why he was captain.
That might have been true of his on-field efforts but the midfielder remains a work in progress as skipper as he becomes used to what leadership entails.
His frank and somewhat exasperated radio interview on Triple M after the club's loss to Hawthorn in round seven gave some insight as to the challenge any young leader faces.
"I'll keep coming in with a smile on my face … and trying to challenge the group," Heppell said.
That's easier said than done although smiling comes naturally to Heppell, with some suggesting his down-to-earth, unaffected personality resembles a modern-day Terry Daniher.
His December tweet congratulating Cale Hooker, David Zaharakis, Tom Bellchambers, Angus Monfries, David Myers, Heath Hocking and Paddy Ryder is a classic representation of the informal lingo both use. It simply said: ''Huge congrats to Myersy, T-Bell, Hooksy, Zacka, Budda, Gusy and Big Pat for receiving life memberships at last night's AGM.''
But challenging a group of peers is much harder, with even the best needing support to re-imagine themselves and their role within the group to lead well and become as respected as they are liked.
Heppell remains in that phase but is impressing all those at the club with several suggesting to Fairfax Media the team's below-par performances in the month before the win against Geelong fast-tracked his growth as captain.
Humble to a fault, he is known as a person who finds it hard to say no, with an affable demeanour.
Those around him are aware of that trait and ensuring he has the support to prioritise what is important.
Along with the Bombers' other young leadership group members, Orazio Fantasia, Zach Merrett and Joe Daniher, Heppell's professional approach has some comparing him in that area to the fastidious Magpie skipper Scott Pendlebury.
His ability is also without question, having finished top three in the club best and fairest in five of his six completed seasons and also being once All-Australian.
Others say with some justification that the fact he performed at such a high level during the supplements saga and has returned from a season-long ban playing well and with a positive outlook on the game is underrated.
It makes him one of football's modern wonders.
But captaincy requires a player to look beyond his own game and make others better, an adjustment no one doubts Heppell will eventually make.
With all that considered, he is tracking well, having taken over the job from the universally respected Jobe Watson last year aged just 24, after being part of a club embroiled in the most tumultuous years in their history.
Heppell admits spending last year alongside Watson was vital, with the veteran, forever bonded with the skipper-in-waiting through the fall-out from the supplements scandal, able to offer sage advice.
However this season is Heppell's first without Watson and his first, in a pure sense, as captain given the integration and all-in approach required during 2017.
"I would say I feel more comfortable in the role now," Heppell said in February.
He's learning to prioritise and delegate and the club has helped too, gradually changing their approach so a consistent routine and a more organised program is established for the leaders.
That structure has served to keep the mood even regardless of the result.
Those watching Heppell at work these days say his greatest strength as leader is his authenticity, with his care for others genuine.
That, they say, will serve him well as it complements his competitive spirit.
On Saturday night he faces off against an opposition skipper in Richmond's Trent Cotchin who faced several trials and tribulations before he became a premiership captain and one of the game's most respected leaders.
Few players have gone through what Heppell has and come out the other end.
A great player, he is now setting himself to becoming a great captain, and like his soon-to-be-shaved beard, Heppell's leadership is growing in every direction.
Where it takes him no one yet knows.
Peter Ryan joined The Age in 2017 having covered AFL as a senior reporter with AFL Media.
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