The Storm looked the likely winners four minutes into the final quarter when they led by 26 points after a goal to co-coach Shannon Geary at their Tannery Lane fortress in front of a huge football-netball starved crowd that paid a gate of $10,000.

At that stage the Dragons had kicked just five goals and given the taxing conditions the game was played in - it was 27.8 degrees at the opening bounce just after 2.30pm - plus being two players down, it was difficult to see there being a way back for Sandhurst.

But in a victory full of grit against the odds, the Dragons piled on six-consecutive goals in an 11-minute burst to record a 11.12 (78) to 8.17 (65) victory and inflict a rare home loss on the Storm.

Led by a lion-hearted effort in the ruck from Chris Down, the Dragons smashed the weary Storm out of the centre in the final quarter and finished the game full of run, with their six goals in succession kicked by Lachie Ross, Martin Leyden, James Coghlan (a brilliant dribble from the boundary), James Mittell, Oscar McKinley and the sealer from Mitch Rovers.

"This feeling right now is the reason you play football," an exhausted Sandhurst co-captain Nick Stagg said.

"To win a game in that sort of style is just unbelievable.

"We had two players (Alex Wharton, AC joint, and Isaac Ruff, ankle) injured at three quarter-time, we were cramping, but these are the types of wins that you dream of.

"We haven't won here since 2014, so this is awesome."

The Dragons' burst of six goals in 11 minutes to over-run the Storm came after they had kicked just five for the first 99 minutes of the game.

The Storm paid the price for leaving the door ajar for the Dragons with a particularly wasteful second quarter in front of goal.

Strathfieldsaye's inaccurate final score of 8.17 featured an off-target 1.8 in the second quarter to the Sheepwash Creek end when what should have been a five-to-six goal lead for the home side at half-time was instead just 14 points, 3.11 to 2.5.

The Dragons closed within two points early in the the third term with the first two goals to Matt Thornton and Beau Cross, but by three quarter-time the Storm were back out by 15 points.

Then when Lachlan Sharp and Geary booted the first two goals of the final term to put Strathfieldsaye up 64-38, the Storm appeared poised to run away with a comfortable victory, but ground to a halt as the Dragons upped the ante to produce their scintillating finish.

"We stopped in that last quarter and Sandhurst was able to get a good run-on," Storm co-coach Geary said.

"We fell away in our structures and that's something with a young team that we've got to learn over our next 17 games.

"At 26 points up we probably relaxed a bit and to Sandhurst's credit, they didn't... they kept their foot on the pedal."

Storm forward Sharp was the leading goalkicker on the ground with four, but also kicked seven behinds, while Riley Clarke in his first game for Strathfieldsaye provided two highlights within two minutes of each other during the third quarter with a pair of brilliant marks - the first of which he clutched one-handed.

Meanwhile, in the reserves match, the Dragons inflicted Strathfieldsaye's first loss since the 2018 grand final as they hung on to win a thriller by five points.

The Storm dominated the under-18 match, winning by 59 points.

SENIORS:

Sandhurst 1.2 2.5 5.8 11.12 (78)

Strathfieldsaye 2.3 3.11 6.16 8.17 (65)

Goals - Sandhurst: M. Thornton 2, L. Ross, M. Leyden, O. McKinley, J. Mittell, L. Zimmer, L. Coghlan, B. Cross, B. Holmes, M. Rovers 1. Strathfieldsaye: L. Sharp 4, C. Jones, R. Clarke, S. Geary, C. Sheahan 1.

Best - Sandhurst: L. Ross, N. Stagg, C. Down, L. Coghlan, B. Holmes, S. O'Farrell. Strathfieldsaye: C. McCarty, R. Clarke, P. Blandford, C. Jones, J. Hall, J. Wilson.

RESERVES:

Sandhurst 2.1 2.2 5.8 6.8 (44)

Strathfieldsaye 0.0 3.2 4.2 6.3 (39)

Goals - Sandhurst: T. Calvert, J. Stewart, B. Robertson, Z. Featherby, J. Fiske-Kealy, C. Connick 1. Strathfieldsaye: T. Bartholomew 3, L. Monti 2, M. Keuken 1.

Best - Sandhurst: D. Morris, I. Bull, T. Nally, B. Robertson, L. Ross, B. Edwards. Strathfieldsaye: M. Parsons, D. Mulquiny, T. Bartholomew, L. Driscoll, L. Monti, M. Wakefield.

UNDER-18s:

Strathfieldsaye 2.1 5.5 9.7 12.11 (83)

Sandhurst 0.1 1.4 3.5 3.6 (24)

Goals - Strathfieldsaye: J. Featherby 3, D. Bell 2, B. Elkington 2, R. Fox, R. Taylor, D. Strawbridge, N. Weihrauch, M. Noden 1. Sandhurst: R. Bolton 2, T. Long 1.

Best - Strathfieldsaye: C. Owins, D. Bell, J. Gamble, M. Hallinan, R. Paetow, H. Welch. Sandhurst: X. Fiske-Kealy, J. Gillies, R. Bolton, S. Morris, J. Craig, J. Worme.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: