Liberal leader Ashton Hurn on Wednesday took the fight to South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas in their last showdown before Saturday's election after another damning opinion poll.
Mr Malinauskas is expected to claim an historic victory for Labor, comfortably holding out the opposition and an increasingly popular One Nation party.
One Nation's SA leader Cory Bernardi is seeking a seat in the upper house and was not invited to take part in Wednesday's debate.
However, the party was still a debate talking point after the latest YouGov poll.
It showed Labor with a primary vote of 38 per cent ahead of One Nation's 22 per cent and the Liberals' 19 per cent, the results similar to four other polls conducted over the past six weeks.
Asked about the latest poll, Ms Hurn said she was a "straight up country person who just is playing the cards that I've been dealt".
However, she noted the eyes of the nation would be on SA to see how the One Nation vote played out.
Mr Malinauskas cheekily reminded everyone that One Nation's leader was based outside SA.
"When I wake up on Sunday morning, whatever the result of the election is, I'll wake up in South Australia - Pauline Hanson will be in Queensland," he said.
Ms Hurn came out swinging at the Labor leader, saying the Liberals would "cut the bullshit, and get back on track with bread and butter issues".
The one-hour debate canvassed issues including the cost of living, ambulance ramping, state debt, housing policy, AUKUS, the state's harmful algal bloom and Adelaide Writers Week's cancellation.
In an assertive and fiery performance, Ms Hurn said the Liberals were focused on issues that mattered to South Australians.
"That's about affordability, that's about making sure the next generation can get into the housing market, and it's also on delivering a better health system," she said.
Mr Malinauskas said the rest of the nation now looked at SA very differently because it was growing its economy along with people's wages.
"People's living standards can continue to improve with thoughtful, dedicated policy effort," he said.
The premier urged voters to choose a united, stable, centrist Labor government that was moving SA at a pace and in a direction "we haven't ever seen before".
Despite the intensity of the debate, it ended with a handshake and warm smiles, with Mr Malinauskas saying the election campaign had been conducted with civility by all candidates.
In the first three days of early voting, 204,461 of SA's 1.3 million voters have already cast their ballot.
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