Jacana hoping to complete the fairytale as it eyes finals berth in EDFL

FOR a club that did not win a game two years ago, the rise of Essendon District Football League club Jacana has been quite remarkable. But the final chapter of the fairytale is still to be written.

Jacana players celebrate a goal in a match earlier this season. Photo: Kris Reichl

IT reads like a fairytale.

In 2012 Jacana Football Club was at its lowest point.

It lost all 17 matches that year by an average of 228 points and many questioned just how much longer the club could survive.

Two years on, the Jaguars have turned their fortunes right around.

Heading into the final three rounds of the Essendon District Football League Division 2 season, the long-time battler is on the verge of making its first finals ­appearance since 2001.

“That’s our goal,” Jacana coach Matthew Sacco said.

“It would be a fairytale. But like always, it’s not an easy job.”

After a strong run of form, the Jags suffered a third-straight loss on Saturday, falling to finals-bound Coburg Districts 18.10 (118) to 15.9 (99).

But Sacco said the losses would only make his side more hungry to hit back in the final weeks of the season, knowing full well it is capable of matching it with the competition’s best.

Injuries have been a recent issue, but the coach expects to have a full-strength side for this weekend’s match with East Sunbury.

After that East Keilor and Keilor Park await and then, hopefully, finals.

“We’ve beaten East Sunbury and East Keilor this year and we’ve beaten Keilor Park too,” Sacco said.

“So it would be nice to get three ... wins but being realistic if we get the two we should play finals.”

Former Brisbane champ­ion Chris Johnson is pencilled in to play the last two games of the year in another boost for Jacana, who currently sit just a matter of percentage points away from fourth-placed Keilor Park.