Sport
16 September, 2024
Grand final goes to extra time as Buffs hold off Tigers in a thriller
The crowd at Legend Oval was treated to one of the great local footy matches on Saturday
Buffaloes are the 2024 AFL Mount Isa premiers after a thrilling win against Tigers in a grand final that required extra time.
Scores were locked at 9.6 (60) when the final siren sounded after the Tigers kicked the last three goals of the game to level it up.
In fact, the Tigers had a chance to win the game when they had a shot on goal late in the contest, only for it to fall short, with no one on the goal line to rush it through for a behind.
In true Mount Isa style, no one knew what was written in the rule book for extra time.
Tigers wanted five minutes to be played each way, while Buffs were keen for two, 10-minute terms.
The umpires decided on a coin toss to choose the format and it was Buffs who won.
Coach Bradley Harris said he was confident his side’s fitness would prevail in the hot conditions at Legend Oval.
“I backed our boys in; we’ve done enough work throughout the season that I was pretty confident we would have had the legs to outdo them in that last bit,” he told North West Weekly.
“That proved to be true, I thought.”
Harris said it was the best game of Australian Rules football he had seen in Mount Isa.
“I thought the standard of the game was about as good as you’ll see out here,” he said.
“I think that was probably the best game I’ve ever seen in Mount Isa. It definitely got the ticker going, that’s for sure.”
It was a game of ebbs and flows as both sides wrestled for momentum.
While the wind favoured the southern end, scoring proved hard for both sides for the most part.
Buffs held a one-point lead at quarter time after the two teams went goal for goal in the opening stanza.
In the second term, Buffs fired out of the blocks, kicking the first two goals, before the Tigers kicked the next three to take a seven point lead into half time.
A four-goal blitz by the Buffs in what is known as the premiership quarter had the Tigers on the ropes at the final change.
A 13-point lead left the Tigers with it all to do in the fourth term.
When Buffs kicked the first goal of the final quarter to lead by 18, it looked all over.
In fact, the tension got so heated on the Tigers bench that one senior player walked out of the venue after an altercation with one of the support staff.
That player would have missed his teammates pile on three goals in a two-minute period to level the scores.
With five minutes to go and all of the momentum (and the wind), the Tigers looked certain to run over the top of Buffs, who had no answer to the run of goals.
However, the senior Buffs stars managed to turn it around.
After the Tigers missed an opportunity to take the lead with a shot that fell short, Buffs ended up as the team in control.
When the final siren sounded, it was Buffs who had the ball at their end of the ground.
The more experienced Buffs side, which also won last year’s AFL Mount Isa premiership, was clearly superior in extra time.
They kicked 2.1 to 0.1 in the first 10-minute period, and then the first goal of the second added term to push the margin out to 18.
While Tigers got within 11 with still enough time to win it, they never looked likely.
Josh Robinson was named best on ground by the umpires, even though he missed 10 minutes after getting into a heated exchange early in the match, however the difference between the two sides was the Buffs full forward.
Benji Lynch didn’t move far from the goal square, however, he kicked six goals (and a couple of behinds) to be the star of the day.
In fact, Lynch’s tally in the grand final made it 96 for the season from just 10 games.
Others to play well for the winners included Nick Burton, captain Thomas Ketchup and midfielder/flanker Nathan Wallace.
“Our captain was outstanding for us today,” said Harris.
“He took about 10 intercept marks – everything overhead – he was great. He set up everything for us defensively which led to our offence running off him.
“That freed up Nick (Burton) to run and carry and hit a few targets with Benji down forward. It was a really good team effort; everyone stood up.”
After the match, AFL Mount Isa named its league best and fairest winners, with Lynch and Burton named co-winners of the prestigious Cargill Medal.
GRAND FINAL SCOREBOARD
Buffaloes 2.2, 4.4, 8.6, 9.6, 11.7, 12.8 (80)
d Tigers 2.1, 5.5, 6.5, 9.6, 9.7, 10.8 (68)
in extra time at Legend Oval, Mount Isa