South Morang and Mernda lock horns for fourth place, 25km apart
They’ll be separated by 25km but South Morang and Mernda will be keeping a close eye on each other in the battle for fourth place in NFL Division 3 with both teams needing victory to play finals.
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It all comes down to the final round for South Morang and Mernda.
The Lions and Demons are battling for the fourth and last spot in the NFL Division 3 finals as they lock horns in fixtures 25km apart.
South Morang currently holds fourth but faces ladder-leader Laurimar on the road, while Mernda must travel to Old Eltham Collegians.
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Mernda sits fifth, just two points behind, and can claim a spot in the post-season with a win if the Lions lose.
“It’s pretty simple for us, we need to win,” South Morang coach Garry Hall said.
“We don’t want to be relying on other results, so we’ll be giving it our best shot.”
Laurimar got the better of South Morang by just seven points in Round 10.
South Morang was held to a draw by Collegians earlier this year and suffered a 65-point hammering in Round 16 and Hall hoped the Turtles could inflict a similar defeat on Mernda.
The Demons claimed a 48-point win over the Turtles in Round 7 but the NFL’s newest team has improved significantly since.
Mernda football manager Shaun Mills said his team was far from complacent heading into the clash.
“Looking at their performances since we last saw them, they’ll be hard to beat,” he said.
“It would be disappointing (to miss finals). When we spoke earlier in the year, we said finals was a must.
“We dropped games we felt we should have performed better in and it’s come back to haunt us.
“Even if we get over the line at Eltham, there’s no guarantee that South Morang don’t get up, we’ve made it hard for ourselves.”
Mernda has finished fifth in two of the past three seasons after being relegated in 2015.
Mills was confident his team could have an impact in finals if it secured fourth.
“We’ve got Kilmore’s measure, Panton Hill are a good team, Laurimar are a good team,” he said.
“You look back at the start of the year against Laurimar we got pipped by four points and we were a bit stiff there.
“Our best is good enough, it’s just our consistency I think.”
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