On Saturday afternoon, Rochester will host Echuca in round 16 of Goulburn Valley League.
The match between the two fierce rivals is perfectly poised.
Echuca is in first place with a record of 15-1 and is chasing a hat-trick of flags.
Meanwhile, Rochester is in third with a record of 12-3 and is hunting a premiership to celebrate its 150th anniversary.
One of the region’s football rumours that swirls around is that Rochester Football Netball Club was formed with the sole ambition of beating Echuca.
However, while these stories are often nothing more than a bit of playful spin, Rochester president Justin Cleary said there may be more fact than fiction in this particularly old sporting tale.
“I think there is definitely an element of truth to that,” Cleary said.
“The very formation of our club was based on the idea of playing Echuca in a game of football, to have a competition against our nearest town.
“I think both communities had some political and economic rivalries.
“There were some issues burning there that motivated the Rochester people to say, ‘Let’s form a club and take on Echuca; we are sick of being the little brother’ — that was how it was born.
“There are some great articles in our 150th-year book that describe the rivalry before football of the two communities; football just added to it.”
Earlier in the season, the Tigers caused a major upset by beating the Murray Bombers on their home deck by 13 points.
It is the one blemish on Echuca’s 2024 record and come Saturday afternoon, Sam Reid and his side will be keen to right that wrong.
The two old foes are set to dance the dance they have done for more than a century.
Cleary said that while the rivalry between the Tigers and Murray Bombers was heated on field, both sides had great respect for each other.
“It has been fierce over the years,” he said.
“I think it is still fierce and held very dearly by both clubs.
“It’s a bit more respectful now than perhaps in past times, which is a healthy thing.
“We celebrated a great win early in the year, but that said, we don’t for one second think that the challenge is not real as they are an incredible club and all their teams are incredibly strong.”
After the struggles that the Rochester region faced during the 2022 floods, matches at home, such as this weekend’s against Echuca, are vitally important financially.
Cleary said the people of Rochester didn’t forget those who helped the community during the flood disaster.
“I know it will be super competitive on the ground, but I must say Echuca as a community has been very supportive to the Rochester community post ’22,” he said.
“There has been many sponsors from Echuca that have sponsored Rochester and have supported our community in our time of need.
“We won’t forget that.
“It was super important and we acknowledge that, and we would do the same for them.
“At the end of the day, we are just one community, but when we put on the boots or put on the bibs, it’s full on.”
Despite two poor losses to Shepparton throughout the season, Rochester is becoming increasingly bullish on its chances as the weeks wear on.
A premiership flag in its 150th year as a club would be a shining light for a town that has suffered such hardship in recent years.
However, Cleary and the Tigers are not getting ahead of themselves, knowing that Echuca will be charging down the Northern Highway to reclaim the bragging rights on Saturday.
“There has been a little bit of chatter for the last couple of weeks coming from Echuca that they have really set themselves for this weekend and want to make a bit of a statement,” he said.
“We expect a massive turnout here, we also have our sponsors’ day on, we will have 100 plus people alone attend that event.
“I know a lot of people will be coming from Melbourne.
“It’s the closest game Echuca has to their home, so they have no excuse for their patrons not to come and support their team; it will be massive.”
Bounce down is at 2pm at Moon Oval.
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