Inside the top six all season, out in the last round of the year?
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That’s the potential outcome for two Goulburn Valley League A-grade netball sides after Saturday’s affairs, but only one will be safe, as the pair are pitted against one another in round 18.
The consequences of results are rife across all six matches this weekend, with nine teams still determining how they could mathematically play in September.
We’ve analysed the last round of A-grade action to anticipate how the final six could end up in the GVL netball.
Euroa v Kyabram
The Magpies will be minor premiers - for at least a couple of hours.
Euroa and Kyabram’s fixture is the only game scheduled for 12:45pm, and it is a lay-up to finish the season for the Magpies.
With a percentage boost likely incoming, Euroa will overtake Echuca (second) and Mooroopna (first) on points, but with a top of the table clash 90 minutes later at Echuca South Recreation Reserve, Euroa’s grasp on top spot mightn’t last long.
To retain first place, Echuca must beat Mooroopna, and Euroa must improve its percentage by 4.85 or more.
Importantly though, regardless of the Echuca-Mooroopna result, a win secures the Magpies the double chance.
Echuca v Mooroopna
If there’s a football-netball venue you’re thinking of getting down to this weekend, make it Echuca South Recreation Reserve.
While finals are on the line for the Cats in the football, the A-grade netball clash is equally, if not more, consequential.
Echuca’s shock loss to Shepparton United last week bumped the Cats to first place, and now the impact of this early finals preview is straightforward.
Win, and earn a double chance. Lose, and miss out (a draw will favour the Cats).
The league’s top two teams going at it with the intensity of a grand final - unmissable.
Tatura v Seymour
After featuring inside the top six all season, Tatura and Seymour are pitted against one another with the chance either side could now miss finals altogether.
Fourth through ninth on the ladder are separated by four premiership points, meaning a last round loss could be the knockout blow to the current fourth and fifth-placed Bulldogs and Lions.
If either side loses, they’ll have to hope two of Mansfield, Shepparton and Shepp Swans succumb to their respective opponents of Shepparton United, Rochester and Benalla - otherwise, it’s a heartbreaking end to one’s campaign that looked destined for finals across the last four months.
If it’s a draw, Tatura will edge out the Lions for finals by less than 0.4 per cent.
Mansfield v Shepparton United
A final round clash for all the marbles.
It’s been a long time between finals appearances for Mansfield, but it will have to topple a Demons outfit that just beat the ladder-leaders last week to return to September.
Mansfield lost to United in round five, but this is a different Eagles outfit now, which has beaten Shepparton, Tatura and Seymour in the second half of the season.
For the Eagles, win and their in. Losing will mean they’ll be banking on Shepparton and the Swans to lose also to remain sixth.
For the Demons, finals are still a possibility after their stunning defeat of Echuca in round 17, albeit it is a long shot.
If United is to play finals netball, it must beat Mansfield by enough to overcome a 3.35 percentage gap, and hope the Bears and Swans also lose on Saturday.
Shepparton v Rochester
This match isn’t as simple as it seemed a month ago.
Rochester has sneakily improved across the month of August, and it could give the reigning premier a season-ending shake-up if it is complacent at Deakin Reserve on Saturday.
The Tigers, while not yet netting a win for its great form, has lost by 11 goals to fourth-placed Tatura, four goals to the Bears-beating Swans, and 22 to expected top-two finisher Euroa in the last three weeks.
These are improvements of three, 23, and 10 to Rochester’s margin of defeat in comparison to the first encounters with these clubs.
It is win or go home for the Bears - victory secures finals and a chance to defend the flag, but a loss will see the current seventh-placed side remain outside the top six.
Shepparton Swans v Benalla
The Swans’ remarkable rise is almost complete.
Their three latest wins by a combined margin of six goals have kept the red and white’s campaign breathing, and the club is rewarded with an easier opponent to finish off the home and away year.
Against one-win Benalla, the Swans should get the job done, but it won’t guarantee a finals spot.
The Swans will only play finals if one of Mansfield and Shepparton lose.