WITH their season on the line, the Bendigo Dragons travelled to Melton on Sunday to face the Western Crusaders II in a do-or-die battle.
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Characterised by stingy defence by both teams, a scoreless first quarter set the mood for a tense battle, with neither team giving an inch.
The deadlock was finally broken midway through the second quarter when Harrison Luke ran in for a Dragons touchdown.
As time ran down in the first half, the Crusaders appeared to be right on the Dragons’ heels, moving the ball down the field for the first time of the day.
But a forced fumble with just seconds remaining in the half ensured the Crusaders would not trouble the scoreboard in the opening 24 minutes, as a confident Dragons unit took an 8-0 lead into the half.
It was an early fumble to begin the second half, however, that gifted the Crusaders their first score of the game, and with that the momentum swung in their favour.
The Crusaders went on to score again on their very next drive, effectively running the ball through the Dragons’ defence en-route to a 14-8 lead.
It was a script the Dragons had become all too familiar with this year, surrendering a half-time lead and losing the momentum they had built in the first half.
Not without a comeback effort of their own, the Dragons came agonisingly close to retaking the lead in the fourth quarter, twice being stopped just inches from the goal line.
With these two stops, the Crusaders were able to hold on for a 14-8 victory, all but ending the Dragons’ finals aspirations.
Now sitting at 2-6-1 the Dragons will need some serious luck to be playing in the October finals series.
After next week’s league-wide bye, the Dragons will take on bottom-placed CCU in Pakenham the following Sunday.