Tea Tree Gully ready for division one prelim final clash with Prince Alfred OC

A local SA footy club will attempt to make its first division one Adelaide Footy League grand final since 2018 this weekend after just scraping into finals and pulling off two straight upsets.

An Adelaide Footy League dark horse will attempt to make its first division one grand final since 2018 this weekend as it aims for its third consecutive finals upset.

Division one club Tea Tree Gully just scraped into this season’s finals series over Broadview by 0.30 per cent over, but has since shocked local followers by defeating reigning premier Port District and third spot Sacred Heart OC away from home in two elimination games.

The Gullies, led by returning coach Justin Maschotta as well as former Adelaide Crow Luke Brown, star ruckman Blake Penney and gun midfielder Alex McKay defeated the Magpies 98-83 and then topped Hearts 76-65.

They will take on premiership contender Prince Alfred OC at Richmond Oval in tomorrow’s preliminary final, the winner facing Glenunga in the big dance.

Tea Tree Gully coach Justin Maschotta celebrates the club’s 2018 grand final win. Picture: Brenton Edwards

“We feel fantastic,” Maschotta said ahead of the big clash.

“We feel like we’ve been given the chance to get more time into the team this season which is what we’ve needed.

“We’ve had a really challenging year with health and player availability but we managed to get some key guys back in around round 15 and we’ve been improving each week since then.”

Maschotta, who won the club’s last division one flag in 2018 and returned this season after time with Central District, has played 18 A Grade debutants this season after being forced to rotate the squad.

He said the ability for his team to pick up important wins throughout the minor round had been important in keeping the club’s 2023 hopes alive.

Maschotts with Chad Schoenmakers and Blake Penney. Gullies have the chance to make their first div one grand final since 2018 with a win over PAOC on Saturday. Picture: Brenton Edwards

“We’ve been able to get some experience into guys and we were able to pick up a few good wins early on in the season which kept us afloat in the long run,” Maschotta said.

“The performance of the list has been really positive overall, our older guys are getting to that 30-year-old age range but we feel we’ve established that next core of 21 to 23-year-olds moving forward which is big.

“We’re ahead of schedule but we feel we’ve also been improving every week.”

The Gullies have needed a full team effort through the last two weeks during what have been tough, tight contests.

The side has seen improvement from star players including Luke Brown at just the right time however, the former Crow dominating in the middle and also hitting the scoreboard.

Luke Brown in action against SHOC last weekend. Picture: In Flight Sports

“It’s a positive sign that we’ve been able to grind out some tough results, it’s who we are so we’re more than happy to get wins in that way with tough contested footy,” Maschotta said.

“Guys like Blake Penney and Luke (Brown) have definitely stepped up – Blake is still only 27 and he’s really taken his ruck craft to another level this year, and Luke has probably managed to get his body right in recent weeks and is playing some very good footy.”

TTG has lost both of its games against Prince Alfred OC this season, but Maschotta remains confident his side can pull off yet another upset.

“We’ve got a lot of respect for Prince Alfred and what they do, and they’ve really got an all star cast.

“We’ve got to take some things away from their game and play how we know we can in the contest and with the ball.

“If we can do that through a full game, which is what we’ve been building towards, we’ll give ourselves a chance.”