Insane last-minute boundary line winner seals Old Scotch comeback thriller

The Cardinals’ season was arguably on the line on Saturday, and they proved they belong in September in enthralling fashion.

Old Scotch hosted Old Brighton in a huge top four battle in Round 16 of the Holmesglen Under 19 Premier Men’s season and the contest did not disappoint.

Scotch jetted off to an early two goal advantage but that was quickly reined in by the Tonners to make it a three-point deficit at halftime.

The Old Scotch kicking woes continued in front of goal for a third straight week as the club stared down the barrel of another loss to their record, potentially leaving their top four spot in jeopardy. At three quarter time, Scotch had a scoreline of 4.10 (34) and trailed Old Brighton by 10 points despite having equal scoring shots to their name.

However, the Cardinals embraced the tight contest and forged their way back to within a goal in a tense final term.

Trailing by four points with less than a minute to play, Old Brighton looked set to clear a defensive 50 stoppage before Nick Baring hunted and smothered the kick, picking up the contested ground ball and snapping around his body as he was tackled over the boundary line to kick one of the all-time matching winning goals.

The 7.12 (54) to 7.10 (52) win places Old Scotch six points clear of De La Salle in the race for finals, while Old Brighton now fall a game behind ladder-leaders St Kevin’s in the hunt for the minor premiership.

Old Xaverians may be out of the finals hunt, but they could be peaking at the right time to be the season spoilers.

Old Xavs defeated De La Salle in a huge blow to De La’s finals chances, with the seven-point nailbiter nearly the killer knockout to the club’s late season charge.

An inaccurate first half from both sides saw the scores level at the main break before a five-goal third term saw Xavs leap away to an advantage of 12 points.

Further inaccuracy from the red and black kept De La alive in the final term, but they were never able to close the gap further than the final result of 7.10 (52) to 8.11 (59).

Xavier Austin once again found himself amongst the Xavs’ best, while Hugo Sheedy did all he could to help De La’s case for victory.

St Bedes/Mentone Tigers’ hopes of avoiding relegation took a hit in their affair with St Kevin’s, as the home side romped to a landslide victory.

SKOB piled on the pain early and never looked back, albeit a spirited third term by the Tigers aided in the result not extending into triple figures, with the final result 18.13 (121) to 6.3 (39).

Lucas May unsurprisingly found plenty of the football inside forward 50 and kicked another bag of four, while Johnathon Gambaro also contributed the same tally.

Jai Pugsley continues to heave SBMT upon his shoulders with three majors to his name despite his side’s lowly scoring output, placing him second in the competition’s goalkicking tally.

Benjamin Palmer has become a familiar name in the best this season and continued that on Saturday, while Angus Shepherdson was deemed best on for the losing side.

Caulfield Grammarians have given University Blues a scare in a seven-point defeat that if falling in their favour would have altered the trajectory of the finals relegation race.

However, the Blues held their nerve to maintain their position in third on the Under 19’s Premier ladder and almost certainly book their ticket to September.

The Blues trailed by a point at quarter time but clawed back a seven-point advantage at the main break.

A struggle-some term from the Fields saw the margin extend to 18 at three quarter time, but Caulfield, who have pushed and beaten some of the top teams this season, were never going to back down.

The Blues were held to just nine points in the final term as the Fields kicked three majors, but ultimately it was not enough to produce the upset victory.

Sitting eight premiership points and a wealth of percentage ahead of fifth, the Blues are set to play in finals for consecutive seasons, along with other locked in rivals Old Brighton and St Kevin’s.

Round 17 presents as the round that could officially end top four speculation, with Old Scotch (4^th) hosting De La Salle (5^th). A De La Salle win will leave their finals hunt alive, but a loss or draw will spell the end of their campaign for September action.

Old Xaverians host St Bedes/Mentone and should SBMT lose this match they will be unable to get out of the relegation zone, however a win could mean even the Xavs face wooden spoon contention.

Caulfield plays Old Brighton in another chance to produce a boilover after falling short last weekend, while a top-four battle between University and St Kevin’s will highlight the credentials each club has for premiership success.