Only four teams are left remaining in the premiership race, with an ancient and a modern rivalry to highlight this weekend’s preliminary final matches.
The husband and wife coached teams, Dazzlers Dingoes and Basic B!tches, will meet in one preliminary final, while the Rosebery Rampage and Grubs, who have both been in the competition for only one season, face off in the other.
Here is your full preview to the two preliminary finals.
Dingoes (1) vs B!tches (6)
Thursday, August 1
7:50pm
Edmund Thornton Reserve
This season: Dingoes won 748-657 at Edmund Thornton Reserve in Round 1; B!tches won 815-763 at Bexley Oval in Round 8.
Last meeting in a final: Never.
Last year we were treated to a fierce and genuine rivalry between Dazzlers Dingoes and Papatoetoe Piranhas.
While that rivalry continued this year, another team in recent years has emerged as the Dingoes’s fiercest rivals, and it’s another team that’s based out of the southern sydney.
Despite winning the 2018 FCFL premiership, the B!tches are the only team that the Dingoes have a losing record against.
Basic B!tches have won three out of the last four against the Dingoes, including both times this year.
In the most recent match, in Round 8, gun English man John Bateman scored an extremely low 21 for his lowest score in his career on what turned out to be a not so good hit out of his impressive season.
The first match saw the Dingoes take out a 748-657 victory at Edmund Thornton Reserve, where they will return this Thursday night.
This will be the final time club stalwart James Maloney plays in front of his home crowd, the 33-year-old having announced that he will leave for France at the end of the season.
They are already without their other second rower, Tohu Harris, who has a knee injury that will keep him out until Grand Final week.
The Dingoes, meantime, enjoyed the week off after coming from behind to beat Grubs 801-745 in their qualifying final, with the magic debut of Brent Naden’s 110 proving to be the difference as they kept their unbeaten finals record intact.
For the winner: a berth in next week’s grand final.
Prediction: Dingoes by 11 points.
Rampage (3) vs Grubs (4)
Thursday, August 1
7:50pm
Turruwul Park
This season: Grubs won 802-628 at Turruwul Park in Round 5; Grubs won 765-530 at Kirrawee Oval in Round 12.
Last meeting in a final: Never.
A sell-out crowd is expected to see the two rookie rivals face off in the preliminary final for the first time.
The Grubs will be full of confidence after destroying the Dragons by 810-686 in a classy performance in the semi-final, in which Ken Maumalo scored a game high of 95 points.
Boyd Cordner will be unavailable after he took a knock to the calf last week, and they’ll face a Rampage side without any distractions through injury or suspension.
Meantime, Jackos’s side enjoyed the week off, having defeated the Piranhas 878-787 in their qualifying final at Kohuora Park the week before.
Despite this, the Grubs should start favourites to progress to their first grand final in their first season.
The two matches between the sides were one way traffic this season, with the Grubs claiming a 802-628 win at Turruwul Park in Round 5 and doing it again with an 765-530 win at Kirrawee Oval in Round 12.
For the loser: season over.
Prediction: Grubs by 24 points.