EFNL Premier Division 2023: East Ringwood snatches last-gasp victory over Noble Park

East Ringwood looked shot – before a miraculous escape in the final minute delivered one of the Eastern Premier Division’s most dramatic finishes this season ...

EAST RINGWOOD looked gone.

Staring down the barrel of a second-straight defeat, the ‘Roos pulled off a miraculous escape on Saturday – overrunning reigning premier Noble Park with two goals inside the last 90 seconds in the 9.6 (60) to 6.14 (50) thriller.

East Ringwood senior coach Ben Osborne recalled the heart-stopping finish, as young gun Sahaf Ali – who finished with two final-quarter goals – drew the ‘Roos within striking distance before spearhead Trent Farmer finished the job with time to spare.

“Chris Cerni had the kick-out … he was able to get it to James Belo and we were able to get it down to our forward line, it spilt over the back, Sahaf ran down one of their players, and he cooly, calmly went back and left-foot snapped it through,” Osborne said.

“We were able to then get the next centre clearance which we’d been dominated in all day … James (Belo) was able to hit Trent Farmer on a lead and he was able to soak up some time and slot it from about 40 out.

“We just took our moments really well and I was really proud of how we stuck it out.”

Sahaf Ali starred with two final-quarter goals on Saturday. Picture : George Sal

Relinquishing top spot off the back of a 56-point loss to Balwyn the previous round, Osborne said his group had become “the hunted” following promotion to the top-flight.

But the coach declared the winning culture built in recent seasons had maintained belief in the move up from the second tier.

“We’ve become the hunted in the Premier Division, when we’ve come up to hunt,” Osborne said.

“We knew that if we were going to beat some of these sides that we were going to have to play 120 minutes, and if it took ‘til the last two minutes of the game to get in front, then so be it.

“We learnt a lot from the weekend before and we’ve done a lot of winning over the last couple of years, so there’s belief there that if we’re close enough, we’re good enough to get over the line.

“With a young group sometimes it’s probably easier to be chasing a game than defending it.”

Trent Farmer finished with three goals. Picture: George Sal

Coburg-listed defender Harry Nolan “stood tall” in a best-on-ground display as Trent Farmer fired with three goals, among an even spread of contributors according to Osborne.

“Our best players were hard to find as it was a consistent performance without any super standouts,” he said.

“We just took moments and blokes stood up in moments.”

East Ringwood holds a 10-3 record for second spot – less than four per cent behind Vermont – while Noble Park sits sixth with eight wins and five losses.

The ‘Roos host Rowville (third) this weekend while Noble Park hosts Berwick (ninth).

East Ringwood 1.0, 5.0, 5.3, 9.6 (60)

Noble Park 0.6, 3.7, 6.8, 6.14 (50)

East Ringwood

Goals:

T. Farmer 3, S. Ali 2, H. Mundy, M. Farmer, W. MacRae, J. Weightman

Best:

H. Nolan, C. Cerni, M. Farmer, M. Keedle, M. Kane, S. Ali

Noble Park

Goals:

B. Marson 2, N. Noblett 2, K. Kean, J. Stern

Best:

J. Sketcher, L. Nelson, R. Pal, C. Horton-Milne, J. Casey, R. Morrison