Reigning BFNL premier Kangaroo Flat has one foot in the finals after it defeated Maryborough 61-41 on Saturday.
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Kangaroo Flat and Maryborough were locked on 24 points going into the round 13 clash and the game was built as a mini-final.
It was the Roos who handled the pressure better. With goal shooter Ruby Barkmeyer in hot form, the Roos set up their win with a strong first half.
Maryborough fought hard in the second half in a bid to get back into the game, but the Roos were never seriously threatened.
Kangaroo Flat has a much easier run home than Maryborough in the final five rounds and it’s hard to see the Magpies displacing the Roos in the top five.
Fourth-placed Eaglehawk handed third-placed Golden Square its second-straight loss.
The Hawks produced one of their best four-quarter performances of the season to defeat the Bulldogs 55-48.
The victory moved the Hawks within six points of the injury-hit Bulldogs.
With the top four teams to play each other this weekend, the race for the double chance for the finals remains open. Square has lost to Eaglehawk and Sandhurst in the past two weeks and will be the underdogs against Gisborne next Saturday.
Second-placed Gisborne overcame a scare against the unlucky Strathfieldsaye.
The Bulldogs won 54-49 to stay one game behind the top-of-the-table Sandhurst.
The narrow defeat ends the Storm’s finals chances. They’ve drawn with Eaglehawk and narrowly lost to Gisborne in the past two games. Two wins would have put Strathfieldsaye right in the mix for the finals.
Sandhurst scored a percentage-boosting win over ninth-placed Kyneton.
The Dragons won 83-20 in nothing more than a training run.
South Bendigo kept its slim finals hopes alive with a comfortable 71-37 victory against bottom team Castlemaine. The Bloods probably need to win their final five games to have any chance of making the finals.
A-grade ladder after round 13: Sandhurst 46 points, 207.9 per cent; Gisborne 42, 158.5; Golden Square 40, 133.9; Eaglehawk 34, 132.7; Kangaroo Flat 28, 109.3; Maryborough 24, 104.4; South Bendigo 20, 86.6; Strathfieldsaye 18, 85.3; Kyneton 4, 50.7; Castlemaine 4, 38.9.
Next week: Eaglehawk v Sandhurst, Gisborn v Golden Square, Castlemaine v Kangaroo Flat, Maryborough v Strathfieldsaye, Kyneton v South Bendigo.