The ledger stands at one grand final win apiece over the previous two years - the Storm winning by 32 points in 2017; the Hawks by 49 points last year.

Not since the late '70s has the Bendigo league had the same two opponents clash in three-consecutive grand finals.

That was arch-rivals Sandhurst and Golden Square, who contested the 1977, 1978 and 1979 grand finals - the Dragons winning in 1977 (21 points) and 1978 (3 points); the Bulldogs triumphing in 1979 (77 points).

Those three flag battles were among five grand final meetings between the Dragons and Bulldogs during the '70s. They also met in 1973 and 1975.

"It was a fierce rivalry, there's no doubt about that, and whenever we ran across the line there was a real hatred between the two clubs," former Golden Square coach Tony Southcombe said back in 2016.

"Hatred may sound a bit harsh, but it was to the extent that even when we were running around warming up before a game, the mouthing off and the banter that would go on between the two sides was just unbelievable."

The only other clubs to have played in three-straight grand finals against each other are Kyneton and Rochester between 1959 and 1961.

Rochester won in 1959 by 31 points, before Kyneton hit back with wins in 1960 (3 points) and 1961 (25 points).

In both the series of grand finals between Kyneton and Rochester and Golden Square and Sandhurst there was one match decided by just three points.

Hopefully, history repeats again on Saturday and spectators are treated to - if not a three-point margin - a grand final battle that goes right down to the wire.

There has been a common thread among the majority of premiership teams across the region over the past two weekends.

Mitiamo (Loddon Valley), North Bendigo (Heathcote District) and Natte Bealiba (Maryborough-Castlemaine District) have all won flags after losing grand finals last year.

And Strathfieldsaye has the chance to do so as well on Saturday given the Storm's grand final loss to Eaglehawk a year ago.

It's interesting to note the importance the second quarter has played in the grand final wins of Mitiamo and North Bendigo.

Mitiamo kicked 5.2 to 1.0 in a second quarter burst against Pyramid Hill to go from 33 points down to trailing by just one at half-time, with that momentum the Superoos gained ultimately setting them on the path to the LVFNL premiership.

And in last Saturday's HDFNL grand final between North Bendigo and Colbinabbin, the Bulldogs broke the game open in the second term, booting 5.3 to 0.1 and not giving the Grasshoppers a sniff for the remainder of the game.

While Mitiamo, North Bendigo and Natte Bealiba all turned grand final disappointment 12 months ago into premiership glory this year, Birchip-Watchem was left to lament another missed opportunity.

Having lost the previous two North Central league grand finals, the Bulls had another crack at winning the flag last Saturday, but were beaten by 19 points by Sea Lake Nandaly.

Whatever the result of this weekend's BFNL grand final, the decade of 2010-19 will end with just four clubs having won premierships - Golden Square (four), Sandhurst (one) and it will be either three or four for Strathfieldsaye or one or two for Eaglehawk depending on Saturday's outcome.

Not mentioned there is Gisborne, which has endured a decade that could probably be best summed up as "what could have been".

The Bulldogs fell agonisingly short of winning their way into the grand final last Saturday when beaten by Eaglehawk by four points in a preliminary final thriller.

However, being on the wrong end of preliminary finals that could have gone either way is all-too-familiar for the Bulldogs.

In 2011 they lost the preliminary final to Eaglehawk by six points - a game in which the Hawks' pair of Matt Gretgrix (seven) and Troy Coates (six) combined for 13 goals.

Then in the 2014 preliminary final against Sandhurst the Bulldogs gallantly fought back from 13 points down at three quarter-time to hit the front - only to have their grand final hopes snuffed out with a goal to the Dragons' Mitch Dole with 30 seconds to go.

Dole's goal handed the Dragons a five-point win.

The Bulldogs also rallied from a three quarter-time deficit in last weekend's preliminary final - this time 18 points - to will their way back to the front late, but again conceded the final goal of the game to another crafty small forward in the Hawks' Riley Saunders.

Last week's result left the Bulldogs with preliminary final losses by just four, five and six points since 2011 - and when you factor in they also lost the 2012 grand final to Golden Square by three points, that's four games this decade with the chance to either get into a grand final or win a premiership that Gisborne lost by a total of just 18 points.

And in all but one of those games, the Bulldogs had more scoring shots than their opposition:

2011 preliminary final - 14.19 (103) lt Eaglehawk 17.7 (109);

2012 grand final - 14.19 (103) lt Golden Square 16.10 (106);

2014 preliminary final - 13.9 (87) lt Sandhurst 13.14 (92);

2019 preliminary final - 11.9 (75) lt Eaglehawk 12.7 (79).

While there's no flags to show for the Bulldogs' efforts this decade, the sight of Gisborne walking off the QEO arm-in-arm last Saturday following a week in which one of the club's players, Nathan Williams, died in a car crash will undoubtedly go down as one of the decade's most poignant and emotional moments.

When it comes to representation on grand final day, it has long been its netball that has carried the load for Kangaroo Flat.

Again this weekend the Roos have strong netball representation, with three teams competing.

However, on Saturday Roos' supporters will also have reason to take a keen interest in what's happening on the football field, with their under-18s to take on Sandhurst.

Saturday will be the first time since Kangaroo Flat's seniors lost the 2000 grand final to Castlemaine that the Roos have a football side competing for the flag.

Since joining the BFNL in 1982 from the Golden City league, the only football teams the Roos have had on grand final day are their 2000 and 1996 (beat Kyneton) senior appearances and their back-to-back reserves triumphs of 1982 and 1983.

This Saturday is the club's first under-18 BFNL grand final in what's very much a case of master v apprentice.

Saturday's appearance makes it 17 of the past 21 grand finals the Dragons' under-18 side has contested.

Sandhurst's grand final record since 1999 stands at eight wins (2001, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014) and eight losses (1999, 2002, 2004, 2009, 2010, 2016, 2017 and 2018).

Sandhurst has the chance to become the first club to crack double figures for A Grade netball premierships on Saturday.

Since the inception of netball in 1991 the Dragons have won nine A Grade flags, which includes their hat-trick in 2005, 2006 and 2007.

That remains the only premiership three-peat that has been achieved in the BFNL A Grade competition, but the Dragons can replicate that on Saturday.

As well as a 10^th A Grade flag in the offering for Sandhurst, a win over Kangaroo Flat would also be a third premiership in a row.

As for Kangaroo Flat, the Roos can draw level on nine premierships with the Dragons if they prevail on Saturday in what's the fifth grand final meeting between the clubs:

1997 - Kangaroo Flat 41 d Sandhurst 38;

2001 - Kangaroo Flat 61 d Sandhurst 46;

2003 - Kangaroo Flat 47 d Sandhurst 42;

2005 - Sandhurst 51 d Kangaroo Flat 36.

For the record, A Grade premierships won by clubs are: Sandhurst (9), Kangaroo Flat (8), Eaglehawk (5), Golden Square (5) and Gisborne (1).

Good luck to all teams competing Saturday.

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