After more than four months of hard-hitting football, the Goulburn Valley League’s finals teams are still not set in stone with one round to play.
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Emphasising the closeness of the competition, seven teams are still hunting for a coveted top six spot, with just one match this weekend effectively a dead rubber clash.
Where could each club finish up? What knock-on effect could each result have?
We’ve analysed the high stakes fixtures of round 18 to preview how the finals could look after Saturday afternoon.
Mansfield v Shepparton United
This match is a nothing burger.
Mansfield cannot make finals, and while Shepparton United is a game outside the top six, it would require a miracle percentage boost, plus Kyabram to lose to Euroa and Rochester to lose to Shepparton, if it is to play finals in 2026.
Tatura v Seymour
Seymour should have entered this clash with little to nothing on the line and a chance to breathe before finals, but expect the Lions to take the clash with wooden-spooners Tatura as serious as an elimination final.
After three consecutive losses, Seymour will be desperate for winning form heading into finals and to sew up third spot, with what was a sizeable buffer now only separated by percentage.
Tatura has long odds to upset the Lions, but an upset of the decade could see Seymour drop as low as six if it somehow stuffs this one up.
Echuca v Mooroopna
Will 2022 repeat itself?
Mooroopna was required to beat top-two team Echuca to play finals in 2022, and remarkably did so, pipping the Murray Bombers by six points.
In 2026, it is an eerily similar situation.
The Cats are perched a game clear in fourth on the GVL table, but can’t relax yet.
With the second-lowest percentage in the top seven sides, Mooroopna will be sweating on other results if it falls to Echuca on Saturday.
Should Rochester win against Shepparton, and other heavy favourites Shepparton Swans and Kyabram get the job done, the Cats could be bundled out of the finals equation on the eve of the premiership campaign.
Thus, it is a must-win match for the men in navy blue and white hoops.
Does lightning strike twice?
If it does, Mooroopna will finish the season in fourth.
If not, the Cats will be left hoping Shepparton kills Rochester’s season.
Shepparton Swans v Benalla
With a draw attached to its record, the Swans’ percentage of 86.4 is of no concern, requiring just the win at home over 11th-placed Benalla to achieve consecutive finals berths.
However, if the Swans’ smooth entrance into September is wrecked by Benalla, they’ll need one of Kyabram and Rochester to also lose to remain inside the top six.
Shepparton v Rochester
After a sluggish start to its campaign, Rochester will have to prove it is worth returning to the finals scene by defeating the premiership favourite at its Deakin Reserve fortress on Saturday.
The Bears have an average winning margin of 55.6 points at Deakin Reserve this season, but Rochester should take belief that they are gettable at the venue - Shepparton’s only loss on the year was at home to Echuca in round eight.
If the Tigers win, they will have proved they belong in September, but still may not enter the top six - they’ll need either Mooroopna, the Swans, or Kyabram to lose in order to make the leap out of seventh.
Euroa v Kyabram
If there’s a team that has embraced the villain arc despite not being in finals contention, it is Euroa.
Three consecutive wins in July against the likes of Seymour and Mansfield proved the Magpies have got what it takes to shake up a finals contenders’ campaign.
Can they do the same to Kyabram in round 18?
If the Bombers lose, they open themselves up to slipping outside the top six if Rochester win.
However, the premiership defence could live on, with the Bombers flying as high as third, but most likely fourth, if it quells Euroa at Memorial Oval.
The weekend’s One FM 98.5 broadcasts are the Kyabram District League elimination finals, first between Murchison-Toolamba and Stanhope live from Violet Town at 2:00pm Saturday, followed by Shepparton East versus Avenel, live from Girgarre at 2:00pm Sunday.