But a dominant win came at a heavy cost for the Bloods, who sustained a pair of injuries to key personnel.

Joint playing coach Allira Holmes (hamstring) and goal keeper Kelsey Niven (ankle) both finished the game on the bench and are in doubt for next Saturday's clash against the Demons.

It was the only dampener in a brilliant team performance, with Holmes and Niven among the standouts in defence in a big Bloods victory.

Elmore, which qualified for finals in second place on the league ladder, withstood a spirited first half fight from Mount Pleasant, to lead by four goals at quarter time and 11 at half time.

But the Bloods put the contest out of the Blues' reach with a stunning 22-7 third quarter, with joint playing coach Gabe Richards scoring all 22 goals.

The Blues, to their credit, rebounded in the final quarter to again push the Bloods, who were able to extend the three-quarter time margin by a further three goals to win 71-42.

It was the Bloods' third win this season over the Blues, all of them in the 25 to 29-goal margin.

Star goal shooter Richards, who ended the game with 57 of her team's goals, said it was the performance the Bloods had been looking for to kick start their finals campaign.

"Finals are a different game and it's a lot more physical and faster and there were a lot of turnovers throughout the game, so you really have to ride the waves that come throughout the game," she said.

"I think we did that well, but we were certainly challenged.

"People are used to us getting big scores against teams, but it doesn't just happen.

"Teams come out and play hard - it takes a bit to pull away.

"Mounts are a good team and they apply pressure all over the court and go their hands to plenty of ball, so it was tough."

While an impressive third quarter effort was an obvious highlight for the Bloods, the last quarter - soured by injuries - was certainly the lowlight.

"We ran out of defenders at the end of it - that's a real disappointing end to what was a good game," Richards

"They were both playing phenomenally out there. They were playing so well together and getting so many stops.

"To have both girls go down before the end of the game was pretty devastating.

"Devastating for them, especially Allira, who has worked all season to get back and play and for it to happen in the last part of the last quarter is devastating."

Already without the injured Andrea Wilson on Saturday, the Bloods got a big performance at wing attack from Cayde Hayes.

While it was 'a tough day at the office' for the Blues, Mount Pleasant coach Carine Comer could not doubt their effort and commitment.

"We always knew it was going to be tough. I thought we came out quite well in the first quarter; there were just a few little things we were trying to adjust as time went on," she said.

"I thought our defensive pressure was great.

"I decided to make a few changes at half time. We saw the margin slowly increasing, so we gave a few things a try, but they didn't work out, so we went back to what we were doing and it was much better.

"It was just that third quarter, but we can only try these things and sometimes they will pay off and sometimes they won't."

Comer insisted she would not hesitate to again experiment with the line-up should the Blues meet the Bloods for a second time in finals in their bid to bridge the gap between the rivals.

A tenacious effort was led in the midcourt by Aisling Tupper (three quarters at wing attack and one at centre) and Maeve Tupper, while goal keeper Ivy Harrop battled hard against the might of Richards.

Comer backed the Blues to rebound strongly in next week's first semi-final against Colbinabbin, after the Grasshoppers put an end to Huntly's season with a 41-35 elimination final win at Colbinabbin on Sunday.

The two teams met in the week before finals, with the Blues claiming a 10-goal win.

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