For the second year in a row the Northern Areas Grand Final was fought-out in hot, windy conditions.
It did not stop fans heading to Laura on Saturday and nearly 6000 turned out to see if Scott Brand’s Tigers could win the club’s first premiership.
Standing in the black and gold’s way was a genuine opponent – though none-the-less underdog - in Broughton-Mundoora, a club that won the premiership in 2006 and runner-up in 2007.
Kicking with the aid of a five goal gust going south in a hurry, the Eagles scored first when Thomas Button steered through a grubber aided by some good shepherding work in the goal square.
But the reply was immediate when elusive Tiger forward-pocket Lucas Chapman came from nowhere to mark a wonderful kick to the 50 from Matt Woolford.
The alarm bells rang in the Broughton-Mundoora shelter when Chapman chimed in for his second, but before the Eagles knew it Scott Brand crashed through a pack in the forward-pocket and scored full points at full trot.
The Eagles looked ragged for a while until Leigh O’Donohue converted a set-shot which lifted the team.
But just as they began to generate some momentum Brogan Whitelaw kicked truly to further extend Southern Flinders’ hold on the game despite going into the breeze. Broughton-Mundoora rallied again and hit the front after magic goals to Joel Kirk and Mark ‘Jack’ Horner.
Their hold on the lead lasted about nine minutes until Chapman put away his third to send Southern Flinders into the break leading five goals to four.
The home-side greeted Broughton-Mundoora at the beginning of the second quarter with a goal for good measure when a flash handball sent Michael Gaunt in for a walk-up sausage roll followed by a great goal off the outer flank from Rhys Stanbridge.
It was not the start the Eagles needed and at half time they trailed by more than five goals after failing to score against the breeze.
They were never in it after that and there is no doubt they fought the contest out to the very last though at the final siren they were 61 points in arrears.
The day belonged to premiership debutantes Southern Flinders who swept aside the opposition with ruthless efficiency. They were well rehearsed, went in with a plan and carried it out to perfection. You could just about read all the way down the budget in naming the Tigers’ best players. The medal for best-on-ground went to Southern Flinders half back flanker Jeremy Edson while Brett Ballantyne rated highly for his game on Horner. John McKenna, Joel Palmer, Matthew Woolford and Scott Mazzone all had outstanding games. Chapman, Stanbridge and Gaunt kicked three each, Whitelaw and Koby Millington kicked two each.
Broughton-Mundoora’s best were Nick Hewett, Thomas Button, Ben O’Donohue, Andrew Wilson, Leigh O’Donohue while Horner was the only multiple goal-scorer with two.
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