Close, but not close enough – that was the story for Macedon as it fell just short of a grand final appearance in the Riddell District Football League.
The Cats came back from a poor first half against Diggers Rest to hit the front in the last quarter of their preliminary final at Romsey Park.
But a couple of Cats mistakes proved costly, with the Burras responding with two goals.
The Cats were able to get one back, but ran out of time, with the Burras winning 10.8 (68)-9.12 (66).
Cats coach Ben Tankard said that in the end, two factors had cost them a grand final berth.
The first was a poor first half.
“We had good starts in our two finals, but Diggers Rest addressed that and had a clear plan,” he said. “We panicked and made mistakes. The positive was that we were still in the game at half-time. They could have put the game away.”
Tankard gave his players a spray at half-time and, with nothing to lose, took a lot of risks.
Jordan Watkins was moved to the wing and told to focus on attack.
Daniel Markworth was moved forward and Jason Cooke was isolated deep in the forward line. Casey Summerfield played all of the second half in the middle.
Those changes worked and brought the Cats back into the game.
Tankard said they could have found themselves in front in the third quarter but they didn’t make the most of their opportunities – the second area that hurt them.
“We couldn’t quite finish the job,” he said. “We dominated the first 10 minutes of the last quarter, but couldn’t convert.
“Diggers kicked 3.0 to 3.4 in the last quarter and that was the difference … Diggers had reasonable chances and were able to take them.”
Cooke was the leading goalkicker on the ground with three goals.
Tankard said Summerfield was the clear standout for the Cats, with Tom Waters, Cooke and Watkins the other good players.
Having won the premiership last season, Tankard viewed the Cats’ season with mixed thoughts.
“We started the season well and then had a couple of lulls during the season, which cost us from finishing top three,” he said.
“The second half of the season, we were inconsistent through injuries.
“While those guys have been out, we’ve played young guys who were on the fringes and brought them along.
“It’ll make us a bit better next year and in the long run.”
Diggers Rest will face Riddell in the grand final on Sunday at Clarke Oval.
