Moama was downed by one goal, but will have a second shot at opponent Rumbalara in the elimination final this weekend.
The few remaining questions of the Murray Netball League regular season have been answered and the final six is now locked in and ready to battle for the flag.
Rumbalara v Moama
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With it already confirmed going in that they would finish in fourth and fifth position, Moama and Rumbalara knew their final round match-up was essentially a tune-up game ahead of a repeat fixture in the finals this weekend.
But with the dust now settled, we aren’t much closer to knowing how that final might play out, with one goal separating the sides at Mercury Drive, Shepparton.
Rumba got the best of the first half and looked to be on the way to a convincing win, leading first by three at quarter-time and nine at the half.
However, Moama still had something in the tank and chipped away at the lead throughout the third, throwing the result back in doubt with a difference of one, 40-39, at the last break.
The fourth quarter played out as a condensed mirror of the previous three, with Rumbalara dominating early and getting back out by four goals, before Moama slowly turned things around, cutting it back to one, but narrowly running out of time as Rumba prevailed 51-50.
It sets up what is sure to be an intriguing clash between the two sides this weekend as they head to Tongala Recreation Reserve in a do-or-die elimination final on Sunday.
Finley v Tongala
Tongala flew past Finley, but other results had it miss out on the top two.
Tongala had little trouble against Finley in its final game of the season, taking down the Cats 69-43.
The Blues wasted no time securing a significant advantage, scoring the first 14 goals and it was elementary from there as they picked up their 14th win of the season.
The only remaining question for Tonny was whether Echuca United could upset Mulwala to open up the possibility of the Blues sneaking in to second by percentage, but with the Lions making no mistake Tongala had to settle for third and the more difficult road to the final.
The Blues will be heavy favourites to advance over Numurkah in the elimination final, held at Moama Recreation Reserve on Saturday, the sixth-placed fellow Blues going in with six fewer wins that Tonny.
Mulwala v Echuca United
Coming in on the back of two straight wins over lower-table sides, Echuca United was looking to both play spoiler for the top-tier Mulwala side and match its six wins from last season.
Unfortunately for the Eagles, with the Lions’ top two status potentially at risk should they be defeated, they didn’t make any slip ups at home at Lonsdale Recreation Reserve.
After a reasonably tight first period, 20-14, the game slowly started to get out of hand for United, Mulwala up 16 at half-time and continuing the momentum into the second to run out a 20-goal winner.
The Eagles finish the year 5-13, while Mulwala will battle minor premier Nathalia in a qualifying final in two weeks’ time.
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