Manly stalwart Steve Menzies has hailed Sunday's 40-nil grand-final triumph over Melbourne the best team performance of his remarkable 349-match career.
Menzies, who equalled Terry Lamb's record mark of first-grade appearances against the Storm, will join the Bradford Bulls in the English Super League next season.
His stellar 16-year stay at the top also included 20 matches for NSW and 15 Tests for the Kangaroos.
But despite all he has achieved in the game, the man they call 'Beaver' admits nothing can top his final outing for the maroon and whites.
"It's probably the best performance that I've ever been involved in, just the occasion of it," Menzies said at the club's fan day on Wednesday.
"From where we'd come from last year, I suppose mentally re-grouping and turning it around the way we did on the biggest stage, that just makes it the best performance."
The 34-year-old added: "It's the perfect ending, I've always sort of dreamed of finishing and I was just in the back of my mind hoping that we'd have a good 80 minutes on the day."
"But to score a try and to win 40-0 and to say goodbye to the club that I've loved for so long was perfect."
Menzies concedes the reality that he's played his last game for Manly is yet to hit home.
"I head over (to Bradford) middle of November, I think it'll sink in then that I'm not going to be here." he said.
"It's a new challenge, I'm looking forward to it and just hoping to go over with my family and enjoy 12 months of footy."
Skipper Matt Orford said Menzies' dream ending was richly deserved.
"To send him out on a fairytale and obviously 'Beaver' scoring a try, I'm sure he's going to have fond memories of that game and this year and us in general - just the blokes he's worked so hard with," Orford said.
"He's going to go away and he's really going to miss this place but I guarantee when comes back we'll still be all great mates."
"And we'll look back on his (premiership) ring and all his time here and look back at some old footage and be able to say we were a part of something really special."