Diggers Rest beats Rupertswood at its own game in low-scoring RDFL semi-final

IT WENT in as underdog but Diggers Rest was again up for the fight on Sunday as it took another giant step in its quest for this year’s premiership cup.

RDFL Football: Diggers Rest V Rupertswood. Diggers Rest coach Shaun Sims

IT WENT in as underdog but Diggers Rest was again up for the fight on Sunday as it took another giant step in its quest for this year’s premiership cup.

A week after taking care of Sunbury Kangaroos by 38 points in their elimination final, the Burras were again at their best as they handed Rupertswood just its fourth defeat of the season at Rockbank’s Ian Cowie Reserve, 6.17 (53) to 3.2 (20).

Diggers Rest went in with a plan and pulled it off to a tee.

They wanted to lock down Rupo in a bid to beat them at their own game and did just that.

Rupertswood managed just two behinds in the opening half and three goals for the game as the Burras controlled the contest in a low-scoring affair.

“I think everyone would have gone in thinking they’d beaten us twice during the year and would win,” ­Diggers Rest coach Shaun Sims said.

“But I thought we executed what we planned to do ­really well.

“They’re probably rightly rated as the best defensive team this year the way they set up.

“I thought we probably beat them at their own game.

“If it wasn’t for some inaccurate kicking, we probably could have won by more.”

Sims was full of praise for his defensive group as Jason Williams, Matthew Krul and Thomas Gleeson led the way at that end of the ground to set up the result.

But the Burras’ midfield also did its job, winning the contested football and not allowing Rupertswood time and space on the outside.

Two boxes are ticked for last year’s runner-up but two remain in the campaign.

Diggers Rest will face the team it lost to in last year’s decider — Riddell — in the competition’s preliminary final at Lancefield Park on Saturday.

If it gets past that, a still unbeaten Romsey outfit awaits in the grand final.

“It’s just another challenge,” Sims said of the preliminary final showdown with Riddell.

“Anything that happened during the year means nothing to us.

“We’ve had two elimination finals now.

“It’s just another elimination final so it’s a pretty simple story.

“Win and we play again next week and there’s a ­pretty big carrot there at the end.”