WANDELLA managed to keep their faint finals hopes alive with a six-point victory over a fast-finishing Murrabit on Saturday afternoon.
The win helped the fifth placed Bombers close the gap to four points to Macorna, although the Tigers also have a healthy percentage advantage with just three rounds remaining.
It was also a significant afternoon at the other end of the ladder, with Moulamein all but locking away the double chance with their 29-point defeat of Hay.
At Wandella, both the Bombers and Blues were fighting to keep their seasons alive in a must-win match, the inaccurate home side ultimately prevailing 13.19 (97) to 13.13 (91).
The Bombers could have had the game sewn up earlier, producing a wasteful 2.8 for the first quarter and trailing by two points despite having the better of the play.
The match continued to ebb and flow after the first break, with both teams enjoying the momentum at times, before Wandella appeared to break clear midway through the last quarter when up by 18 points.
Murrabit weren’t done with, however, a Cooper Williams goal was quickly followed by some Dustin Blake magic in the dying minutes, setting up another grandstand finish.
But the Bombers defence held firm to keep their season alive.
It was a proud moment in an otherwise difficult season for Wandella coach Logan Keighran, who was full of praise for a number of key onballers over those final minutes.
“As soon as (Murrabit) got that first goal, we knew we needed to tighten up, but then they got another one really quickly so we just had to find a way to hold on for the last couple of minutes,” Keighran said.
“We did really well at shutting the game down and creating stoppage after stoppage and getting numbers behind the ball which helped get us over the line.
“I thought our midfield were terrific, it was a tough contest in there but our ability to use the ball well going forward really set us up.
“Russell Rich, Declan Hogg and Adam Ward, their good ball use going inside our forward 50 made it a lot easier for us to score and at the start of last quarter, it was their smart ball use that got us those four goals.”
Jarred Schlitz was another key player for the Bombers in the second half, with the big-bodied midfielder shifting to full-back in an attempt to quell the influence of Damian Cupido, who finished the day with five goals.
Dustin Blake continued his strong season to be among Murrabit’s best, along with Nathan O’Toole and Tobie Cameron, whose run and ball use off half-back was a constant feature.
Wandella will host Hay after the league-wide bye, with the Bombers needing to beat the third-placed Lions to keep their season alive.
Hay will be looking to rebound following their 11.14 (80) to 7.9 (51) loss to Moulamein, who claimed a third-straight win ahead of a top-of-the-table clash with Ultima next round.
After starting slowly, Moulamein quickly took control in the second quarter, kicking nine of the next 11 goals to blow the game open and set up an unassailable 33-point lead at three-quarter time.
Heath Moloney led the way for the visitors, with the Swans coach producing a near-flawless performance along with Blake Azzopardi, Amos Farrell and Beau Duggan-Hulands.
In another hard-fought affair, ladder leaders Ultima overcame a determined Macorna thanks to five unanswered goals in the third quarter.
For the remainder of the match, the Tigers were able to match it with the premiership favourites, with the Roos eventually running out 10.16 (76) to 8.7 (55) winners.
