Bears, Cats raring to go ahead of Goulburn Murray Junior League grand finals

The reigning champion Bears finished second and expectedly won through to the big dance.

However, Echuca Murray Bombers knocked off its sister team and minor premier Echuca Bombers in the preliminary final, adding a sprinkle of spice to the finals race.

“We're excited; if we bring our best, that will be good enough - but it's how consistent we can be, isn't it, when you're dealing with kids?,” Bears coach Clint Dudgeon said.

“If we can play our best footy, we’ll be thereabouts.”

Shepparton Notre Bears have been here before – but not quite like this.

Twelve months ago, they stormed to the under-16 division one premiership with a side that played like seasoned campaigners, beating Kyabram by a cosy 30-point margin.

But on Sunday, the Bears return to the grand final stage against Echuca – only this time with a retooled line-up.

Dudgeon has coached most of the squad for years now, and he, like the players, knows the narrative: team work makes the dream work.

“A lot of those boys won the year before as well in the under-14s. It's probably a good thing – they know what it takes to a certain degree,” he said.

“A lot of them won in the 14s, some stepped up, some stayed down, so they've been lucky with footy, I suppose.

“I've coached some of these boys since under-10s, so we've gone all the way through - at least most of them from under-13, then 14, and now 16.”

As for the opposition, Echuca Murray Bombers have been on a tear with a five game unbeaten streak gusting wind into its sails.

The bottle greens’ most recent loss came against the Bears back in round six, and through it was by a substantial 46-point margin, Dudgeon knows finals are a different animal.

“They're probably the form side of the comp in the last five weeks. They're playing good footy, very disciplined, and they'll be very hard to beat for sure,” he said.

“We've just got to be really strong over the footy and know that our best will be good enough. We've just got to bring our best.”

In under-16 division two, Mooroopna has barged its way through the finals series to meet undefeated Seymour in the decider.

The Cats lost to Seymour by three goals in the qualifying final, but smashed past Tongala by 109 points in the prelim to send a warning shot to the Lions ahead of Sunday.

Mooroopna will have dual representation at Deakin, with the club’s under-14 division one side squaring off against Echuca Green in the morning fixture.