EFL 2018: Heathmont records a one-point win over The Basin in the Division 3 elimination final
HEATHMONT recorded another remarkable come-from-behind finals victory to eliminate The Basin from the Division 3 premiership race.
Local Footy
Don't miss out on the headlines from Local Footy. Followed categories will be added to My News.
HEATHMONT recorded another remarkable come-from-behind finals victory on Sunday to eliminate The Basin from the Division 3 premiership race.
It appeared the Jets would bow out of finals at the first hurdle when they trailed by 17 points at the 10-minute mark of the final term, only to kick the final three goals of the game and finish with a one-point triumph.
THE EFL CLUBS LOOKING TO END LONG FINALS DROUGHTS
A rushed behind in the final 30 seconds secured a famous 10.8 (68) to 10.7 (67) win to set up a semi-final date against Boronia on Saturday.
“It was one of the best wins I’ve been associated with,” Heathmont coach Joel Cordwell said.
“We’ve had really close games with The Basin all year and it could have gone either way but our guys dug in when we needed to and it was built on character and resilience.”
The Bears kicked the first three goals of the final term and appeared on track for their first finals win since 2015.
But first-year players Callum Norris, Ben Irvine, Ryan Burleigh and Bailey Stevens provided the spark to ignite Heathmont late in the game, showing endurance and composure beyond their years.
BLACK SET TO MOVE ON AT MOOROOLBARK
HAWKS SHORE UP STOCKS FOR 2019
VICTORIA’S WORST FOOTBALL TEAMS TO FACE OFF
The experience of Leigh Odermatt and Brent English also came to the fore, providing avenues to goal in the final quarter.
What is it about Heathmont and come-from-behind finals wins?
The Jets last year came from three goals behind against Ringwood in the preliminary final to win through to the grand final in a giant-killing September run, despite only qualifying for the top five in the final home and away round.
“I think the key to it is we just want to go for the whole 120 minutes, that’s just a bit of a mantra we’ve got and we’ve just been saying that we want to play our way as best we can for that 120 minutes,” Cordwell said.
“I think it’s a bit of belief and just backing the system … I said to the group after the game it was a very resilient performance, a lot of character.
“In the end I felt like we deserved — we were winning for most of the game — so it was good to get it back when we thought it was lost.”
The Basin coach Justin Stanton praised Heathmont’s character.
“A lot of ebbs and flows through the game, I was certainly proud of my guys and on the day, as they say, the best team won on the day,” Stanton said.
“I thought we had most the momentum in the second and third quarters and certainly for 15, 20 minutes of the last quarter we had all the momentum.
“They had every reason to put the cue in the rack when they were three goals down 15 minutes into the last quarter but they worked hard to claw their way back into it.”
MORE LOCAL FOOTY NEWS
RED HILL FLEXES MUSCLE IN FINALS WIN
Off-season central: every RDFNL club’s recruits
The new season is just around the corner and Riddell District clubs have been busy bolstering their lists. Check out all the news recruits here.
Recruit tracker: ex-AFL talents join Northern league
OFF-SEASON CENTRAL: It’s a new year and the new local footy season is just around the corner. Check out the latest recruits at every Northern league club here.