The playing career of the premier midfielder in the BFNL in modern times will come to a close on Saturday.
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Golden Square star Simon Rosa confirmed on Tuesday that Saturday’s grand final against Sandhurst will be his last game for the Bulldogs.
“It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while and it has to come to an end at some stage,’’ Rosa said.
“It’s something I’ve found difficult to come to terms with over the past four to six weeks, but I have indicated to the club that this will be my last game.
“Hopefully, we can finish on a good note.”
Rosa, 33, said family and work commitments rather than niggling injuries meant the time was right to hang up the boots.
“I’ve had a few niggling injuries this year, which has made it hard to recover, but right now I feel the best I have for the year,’’ Rosa said.
“It’s more so that I’ll be 34, my family is getting bigger after Christmas, work is getting busier all the time and I feel that I’d rather finish up now while my body is okay rather than playing on and being too old and slow.
“As hard as it is to come to terms (with not playing on), I’ve got to be realistic at the same time.”
Rosa said he will stay involved in football in the long term, but might take a break from the game in 2017.
Rosa has already won four premiership medals with the Bulldogs and he’s confident he can go out with a fifth on Saturday.
The Dogs enter the game as rank outsiders after the Dragons thumped them by nine goals in the second semi-final.
Sandhurst also won the two home and away games against Golden Square.
“I’d like to think we’ve learnt quite a bit from the previous three times we’ve played Sandhurst,’’ Rosa said.
“They (Sandhurst) are a quality outfit and a disciplined side. We need to play a good brand of footy and get an even contribution across the board.
“If we can get 22 contributors instead of 10 or 12… then we feel as though we can match it with them.”
Meanwhile, Golden Square coach Nick Carter put his side through a sharp training session at the Queen Elizabeth Oval on Tuesday night.
All eyes were on Travis Baird and Ryan Colbert after they missed the preliminary final win over Eaglehawk.
Baird and Colbert both moved freely and look set to be recalled for the grand final.
The big decision for Carter and his selectors is who will they drop.
Bendigo Pioneers duo Riley Saunders and Jordan Rosengren came into the preliminary final side to replace Baird and Carter.
Saunders looks a certainty to play in the grand final after giving the Bulldogs a spark in the forward line, particularly in the final quarter.
Rosengren didn’t get a lot of the footy in attack, but his defensive pressure was good and he wasn’t the Dogs worst player.