The Central Victorian League One Men’s championship remains up for grabs with one round to play, with Shepparton South and Tatura securing three points at the weekend.
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South, which sits on top of the table with a superior goal difference and a three-point buffer, survived a first half scare to pick up an impressive 5-1 win.
Played in the unusual late Saturday afternoon timeslot, Rob Harmeston’s side went a goal down in the 37th minute, with a 43rd minute Nicholas Mori strike having the two sides go into half-time at one apiece.
When the second half kicked off South struggled to build a buffer, with Mori scoring again in the 52nd minute to create a 2-1 lead.
It took another 20 minutes for South to find a sealer, with Craig Carley finding the back of the net, before goals to Sean Grant and Jamie De Smit rounded out an impressive second half performance.
Like South, the league’s other title contender was in danger of dropping points on Saturday evening, with Tatura securing a slim 2-1 win away from home against Eaglehawk.
The home side went a goal up just one minute in, before a fifth minute Thomas Leech equaliser got Tatura back in the contest.
From here the game was in the balance, with a 65th minute Zac Ferlauto strike breaking the deadlock and keeping the Ibises in with a slim chance of securing a first place finish.
Meanwhile at McEwen Reserve, Shepparton United picked up a 7-0 win over Golden City.
Currently in fourth place, Lewis Coyle’s side was led to victory by hat-tricks to Alisina Alizada and Ben Degradt-Hayford, while a single goal to Reza Baqiri rounded out an impressive win.
In the League Two men’s competition the Shepparton Jaguars faced off with Swan Hill.
The game played at Tatura’s Howley Oval was a battle between first and second, with the ladder leading Swans simply too strong, running out 5 to 2 victors.