That one day in September has finally arrived, as the Sandringham Dragons prepare to take on the Oakleigh Chargers in the TAC Cup Grand Final decider. As well as the significance of playing on the prestigious Etihad Stadium turf, both sides will be fighting for premiership glory, on the TAC Cup’s biggest stage as Ben Cavarra reports.
Sandringham was consistent all year, finishing second on the ladder. After defeating the Gippsland Power in the first qualifying final, they then came from behind to beat the Calder Cannons in last weekend’s preliminary final, advancing them to the Grand Final.
Oakleigh, finishing seventh on the ladder, hit some great form heading into this year’s finals series. After defeating the North Ballarat Rebels in the elimination final, they took on the Gippsland Power. A hard-fought win over the Power, they then advanced to the Grand Final with a gutsy win over the Dandenong Stingrays, to earn themselves a thoroughly deserved spot in the Grand Final.
Anthony Anastasio was instrumental for the Dragons in their come-from behind win on the weekend over Calder, kicking 3 goals, while Ben Darrou was the best player on the ground.
Dom Tyson was the best player on the ground for the Chargers on the weekend in their close victory over Dandenong, while Sebastian Gotch and Anthony Soriano each kicked 3 goals.
The last time these two teams met was in round 3 this year at Visy Park. Sandringham took the four points defeating the Chargers by 31 points. However, finals are a totally different game, and round 3 was a long time ago.
These two teams played each other last year in the finals, it was an elimination final at Visy Park, and Oakleigh won that game by 2 points.
Both teams will know how important this game is, and the team that really wants it more, will be victorious on the day.
Last Modified on 23/09/2011 17:06