Finals will start two weeks early for the Yenda Blueheelers as they look to keep their top-five hopes alive when they head to Yanco to take on the Hawks.
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For the Blueheelers, they are currently two points behind the fifth-placed Hay Magpies, and coach James Dole knows how important this weekend's clash is, and their chances will be helped by the return of two senior members of the side.
"We are looking pretty good this week with Tom Sellars and Shorne Ngu coming back," he said.
"I think we have timed that pretty well because the season is on the line the next two weeks. Each game from here on out is finals footy for us."
It has been a tough season for Yenda when it comes to injury, with Dole saying they probably won't get Todd Granger back this season while he was hopeful that he would get Henry Taylor back for their final-round clash with Hay.
While they were on the end of a heavy defeat against the Black and Whites last weekend, Dole said the group were positive despite the 42-0 defeat.
"The narrative was that they were going to put the mercy rule on us within sixty minutes, so the goal was to go out there and play with high energy and a really good attitude," he said.
"As I said after the game, it is strange to be pulling positives out of a scoreline, but myself and the whole team were really happy with how we handled it. The overall vibe after the game was all positive, and we really needed that coming into the next two weeks."
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The Blueheelers have yet to be mercy ruled by any of the top three this season, unlike the fifth-placed Magpies, and Dole said the side is using that as motivation to make the late charge for the final place in the top five.
"I don't think it is too far of a stretch to say that we are a better quality football side than what we have performed this year," he said.
"That has probably been the disappointing thing about it, on paper, we are a handy footy side, but with injuries and positions changing, I think we have had probably two or three games where we have actually put it together this year.
"We can pull some hope out of the fact that we haven't been mercy ruled by the top three sides."
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Liam Warren
As someone with an underlying passion about sport it is a privilege to report on the sporting landscape around the MIA
As someone with an underlying passion about sport it is a privilege to report on the sporting landscape around the MIA
