by Davyd Reid
Buln Buln, Neerim-Neerim South and Ellinbank.
If you had of said it would be those three teams still in the race come preliminary final week for Ellinbank District Football League's biggest prize at the beginning of the season, not many would have been surprised.
The Lyrebirds have half their hand on the trophy, having won through to the grand final in an impressive performance over Neerim-Neerim South in Saturday's second semi final.
It was the first time the Cats had dropped a match all season, but the form side of the competition earn another shot at making the decider in a sudden death preliminary final against Ellinbank this weekend at Darnum.
The Cats will enter the contest desperate to bounce back, with their body of work over the season deserving a shot in that final match in September.
A straight set exit would simply be disastrous and a season of work wasted. A win is simply a must to avoid any tag of crumbling in the pressure cooker that finals brings.
The Cats comfortably accounted for Ellinbank in their last meeting, which came in the final home and away round. But you only have to look as far back as round nine to see the Eagles have what it takes to match the opposition.
A strong start proved key to securing the result for Neerim-Neerim South in that encounter; the Eagles kicking four goals to five after quarter time to go down by just 16 points.
Ellinbank have been the form side of the competition in previous seasons, finishing 2021 undefeated with the season ultimately cut short due to the pandemic.
The Eagles have had their availability challenges over the course of the season, which ultimately saw them finish in a precarious fifth.
However, Ellinbank have had its best players return to the park in recent weeks, putting in impressive finals performances to brush aside Poowong and Trafalgar.
Having encountered challenges during the home and away season, Northern Territory star midfielder Nat Paredes has been able to shake the tags in recent weeks to set up what should be an enticing midfield battle.
Coach Ben Wragg has been instrumental in defence and should get the job on one of the Cats' keys, but he will need support to quell a damaging forward line that features the top three goal kickers in the league.
Expect Saturday's contest at Darnum to go right down to the wire.

PRELIMINARY FINALS

Venue: Darnum Recreation Reserve

Seniors: Neerim-Neerim South v Ellinbank at 2.10pm.

Reserves: Neerim-Neerim South v Buln Buln at 12.15pm.

Thirds: Longwarry v Ellinbank at 10.25am.

Fourths: Yarragon v Ellinbank at 8.45am.