ALTONA has prevailed in a titanic struggle over defending champions Spotswood to move through to the Western Region Football League division 1 grand final for a historic first time.
The Vikings held sway for most of Saturday’s enthralling 11-point second semi-final win at Avalon Airport Oval, but could not kill off the plucky Woodsmen until the midway point of a pulsating last quarter.
That is when the mercurial talents of Travis Lunardi went to work. He delivered a knockout combination with a booming goal from 50 metres out at the 10-minute mark, followed by another goal on the run five minutes later, capped off with exuberant celebrations befitting the important moments.
While the Vikings had their noses in front for most of the game, the Woodsmen battled hard to make it a close contest, despite having the burden of being three rotations down for most of the second half, including a game-ending hamstring injury to player-coach Chris O’Keefe.
When the Woodsmen got to within three points after five-goal forward Christian Elliott booted two goals in the opening two minutes of the last quarter, a comeback seemed to be on the cards.
But the Vikings knew what was at stake — a chance to bury the ghosts of last year’s gut-wrenching one-point preliminary final loss to the Woodsmen and an opportunity to be the first team since the club’s arrival in the WRFL [formerly Footscray District Football League] to reach a top-flight grand final.
“They certainly came hard at us at the end,” Vikings captain Josh Russo said.
“The fact that we wanted to make a grand final drove us.
“We were never going to give up.”
This match can be classified an instant classic.
The pendulum swung all game with pressure — be it actual or perceived — at its highest.
The WRFL’s newest rivalry is delivering each time the clubs lock horns.
“We’ve had a few of those battles with Spotty the last four times we’ve played them,” Vikings coach Anthony Eames said.
“It was a see-saw all day.
“Spotty never do [stop]. Even then, with two or three down for the last quarter and a half, it really made no difference to their output on the field.
“Every time we threatened and got three goals up, they hit back again.”
The Woodsmen are no stranger to great finals matches.
They have played in some of the more memorable ones en route to winning four of the past five premierships.
Despite his side being on the wrong end of the scoreline, O’Keefe could still the game for what it was worth.
“It was a terrific game of football from two really good teams,” he said.
“It’s what you expect from a one-versus-two final.”
