The Blues were left to lament several missed opportunities in the first half, including key striker Daniel Purdy missing an open net, and one defensive lapse in the second half as the visitors pounced to pinch a point.

"Shepparton South played a completely different style and they made it a scrap,'' Strathdale coach Jon Bryers said.

"It took us a while to come to terms with it, but we missed a few chances in the first half and should have put the game to bed by half-time.

"If you don't take your chances against the top five sides then you could be in trouble."

The Blues weren't helped by a knee injury to star midfielder Dean Vlaeminck.

The playmaker didn't return to the pitch for the second half and faces a race against time to be fit for this week's clash with Moama.

The Strathdale result, combined with Moama-Echuca's 5-1 drubbing of Tatura and Eaglehawk's comfortable 9-0 win over Colts United, changed the complexion of the top three.

Ladder leader Moama-Echuca goes into this Saturday's clash with Strathdale with a four-point advantage over Eaglehawk and a five-point lead over the Blues.

The Border Raiders have played one more game than the Borough and two more games than Strathdale.

"On their day anyone in the top five can beat anyone else,'' Bryers said.

"It's set up for a really close finish."

Moama-Echuca skipper Mitchell Langenbacher scored twice in his side's impressive win over Tatura.

It was seen as a danger game for Moama, but a four-goal burst in 20 minutes in the second half showed the Raiders' class.

Eaglehawk coach Greg Thomas has been calling on his players to put together 90 minutes of good soccer and on Sunday they achieved that against Colts.

The Borough had three goals on the board inside the first five minutes and finished the day with nine.

Thomas scored four times himself, while Scottish import Craig Rennie added a hat-trick.

English imports Abdirizak Hussein and Charlie Peacock played one last game for Golden City before moving to Melbourne club Fitzroy City and they helped the Rams score a 1-0 win over Epsom.

Despite Epsom being reduced to 10 men for the final 40 minutes of the match, it took the home side until the 78^th minute to score the winner via a Caydn Thompson shot that went in off the post.

"The first 20 minutes Epsom looked really good and they put us under pressure,'' Golden City coach Nathan Claridge said.

"Once the game settled we started to get control, but we couldn't finish. We had wave after wave of attacks in the second half, but we couldn't find the back of the net until Caydn finally scored.

"Epsom has a young side and they battled away really well. They're on the right track."

In the final game of the round, Shepparton United defeated Shepparton 4-1 to consolidate sixth position on the table.

In the women's championship, Eaglehawk is clearly the number one contender to championship favourite Shepparton United.

The Borough put paid to Colts United 4-0 on Sunday to consolidate second place on the ladder - three points behind Shepparton United.

The Colts and Eaglehawk clash was expected to be a tight affair, but the Hawks outclassed the home side.

In-form Borough skipper Chloe Parker scored her second hat-trick in as many weeks, while Rosie Neylon also found the back of the net.

The Hawks are 24 points, three points behind Shepparton United and two points clear of third-placed Shepparton South.

Colts are in fourth place on 21 points.

Shepparton United thrashed bottom side Shepparton 13-0 to extend its winning streak to nine games.

Eight players scored goals for Shepparton United, led by a hat-trick from Caitlin Georgiou and braces to Taylor Zito, Sophie Papalia and Maria Villani.

Shepparton South and fifth-placed Strathdale played out a thrilling 2-2 draw.

An Emma Heaney goal just before half-time gave the Blues the lead.

However, Shepparton South dominated the opening actions of the second half and they grabbed the lead after Alannah Scopelliti and Britney Scrivens scored goals.

With 10 minutes to go Strathdale's Lucy Teale levelled the scores to set up a grandstand finish.

In a hectic finish both sides had chances to pinch the winner, but no more goals were scored and they were forced to share the points.

Golden City is only goal difference outside of the top eight after thrashing Epsom 6-0. Letesha Bawden scored four goals for the Rams, while Abbey Thompson and Taylah Harrison added the fifth and sixth goals.

A second-minute goal to Isabella Gow was enough for Moama-Echuca Border Raiders to secure the three points against Tatura.

In the final game of the round, La Trobe University scored an emphatic 7-1 win over Swan Hill.

Have you signed up to the Bendigo Advertiser's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in central Victoria.