By DANIEL MOSCA - Division 2 Seniors
THE Yarraville Seddon Eagles survived a late surge from North Footscray to hold on for a 6-point win over the Red Devils on Saturday.
In a battle between Division 2's top two teams, the Eagles earned themselves a week off with their semi final victory over the minor premiers, thanks to their strong first and third quarter play.
The Eagles will now face off against either North Footscray or Caroline Springs in the Grand Final in two week’s time.
North Footcray, meanwhile, despite finishing the home-and-away season with the best overall record, will be ruing a number a blown opportunities late and now face the prospect of going out in straight sets if they fall to the Lakers on Saturday.
With the wind proving the play a crucial role in the contest, the Eagles took full advantage of it early.
They booted the only three goals in the opening term, capped off by Chris Topalidis' snap inside the goal square to take a 20-point lead into the first break.
North Footscray would hit back early in the second quarter through Kaine Williams, who goaled off a set shot from the left wing to give the Red Devils their first major of the contest.
Like the Red Devils in the first quarter, the Eagles scored just two behinds in the second as North Footscray battled their way back into the scrappy contest.
After Brayden Montebruno's sensational snap late in the second term, the Red Devils trailed by just nine-points going into the half-time break.
With the momentum all theirs coming into the second half, North Footscray came out aggressive in the third quarter with the contested footy clearly being a priority.
They earned themselves a number of hard-ball gets and after Zak Atkins found forward Tyren Montebruno who goaled from a set shot, the Eagles' lead was just three-points.
However, the tide would turn as Yarraville Seddon, once again taking advantage of the wind, booted the next five goals courtesy of five different goal-kickers. It was the Eagles most dominant stretch of the contest and it aided them to a 33-point lead going into the last break.
It went from bad to worse for North Footscray as the fourth quarter got underway. First, they squandered a plethora or chances going forward and then conceded the first goal of the quarter from to Yarraville Seddon from a 50 metre penalty.
After Macauley Goring kicked the Eagles second goal of the term, the lead was beyond six goals and the game looked all but over for the Red Devils.
This paved way to a frantic finish as North Footscray stormed back into the game. Riding a wave of momentum, they rattled off four straight goals in the final 10 minutes to get within a goal.
Unfortunately for them, they ran out of time and the Eagles held them off just long enough to claim the six-point win.
While a brave finish by the Red Devils, they will be lamenting their inaccuracy late, finishing with 10 behinds in the fourth quarter alone.
In the other semi final game, Caroline Springs cruised to a 109-point win over Glen Orden. They will face off against North Footscray in the preliminary final.
Last Modified on 22/08/2016 14:12