Sharing a beer with his Richmond premiership heroes was never on Norm Slater’s bucket list when the Colac man was dealt a life-threatening cancer blow.

The AFL powerhouse has spent this week on the coast at Apollo Bay on the eve of their 2023 campaign, staying at Pisces Holiday Park where Norm has owned a cabin for about 20 years.

Norm had the thrill of his life on Tuesday night when a host of Tigers stars including former skipper Trent Cotchin, Tom Lynch, and Nathan Broad arrived on his balcony with their three recent premiership cups and a slab of beer.

It was a pinch-yourself moment for the 50-year-old, who had his world turned upside down around this time last year when a melanoma claimed half a big toe and spread right through his body, while also suffering a heart attack.

“I could not believe it having three premiership cups sitting up here,” Norm said.

“It was fantastic, it was the first time I’ve had a beer in a while, and a heap of the players came up and spent about an hour just having a chat about life in general; surfing, fishing… they love it down here.

“I’ve been Tigs forever, so it was just unbelievable.”

Norm and his family, wife Leanne and two sons Jack and Dylan, both in their 20s, have endured a tumultuous time after cancer struck Norm.

“It all started about 12 months ago,” he said.

“I lost half my toe through melanoma, and it went up through my lymph nodes and then I had more scans, and it went into my back and into my head.

“It’s been a bit of a journey through hospital visits to Geelong for treatment and I started immunotherapy.

“I got through the first and second batch and then I had a heart attack, and I also had one cut out of my head and a month later they found five new ones which are still there after I had headaches.

“I’ve asked doctors a few times, ‘can you give me a timeline?’ but they just don’t know, I’m just trying to be positive, some days you feel okay and some days you feel like you don’t want to get out of bed.”

Norm’s cancer shock has led him on a mission to make the most what time he has left on Earth between palliative care stays in Colac.

He has ticked off a trip to Darwin to watch son Dylan play state league cricket and holidayed in Queensland with his close Colac mates, cheering on his beloved Tigers in action against the Gold Coast.

But Norm couldn’t contain himself by the gesture from the AFL club during their stay at Apollo Bay, which was orchestrated by fellow Richmond fanatic and Pisces manager Adrian Davidson.

“I’ve got a bit of a bucket list going on and I’ve nearly ticked them all off,” he said.

“I went over west to see my brother Anthony in Busselton, Darwin with Dylan, and a group of us from Colac go every year to Queensland to watch Richmond and Gold Coast.

“(Tuesday night) wasn’t on the bucket list at all, but it was something special.”

Norm said his Apollo Bay cabin, where youngest son Dylan was also staying during the Tigers’ special visit, had been treatment for him in itself.

The seaside village has been taken over by the Tigers this week, with players taking on an amazing race around the town and boosting its economy with visits to shops and sporting clubs. 

“Apollo Bay’s my happy place, it’s fantastic down here,” Norm said.