by Nicholas Duck
It's rivalry round in the Gippsland League this week as a number of neighbours find themselves in some monster clashes.
Highlighting the local effort is the Western Derby between age-old rivals Warragul and Drouin.
Warragul vs Drouin
Here we go again.
The storied rivalry between Warragul and Drouin continues this week as the old enemies do battle once more.
These two teams may be sitting at ninth and tenth on the ladder respectively, but make no mistake, this is going to be one to watch.
Fans should note that this game will be played one of two matches played on Sunday, along with Bairnsdale vs Sale.
Round one saw these two play out a high pressure, close affair with the Gulls prevailing by just three points.
The struggles both sides have endured since that game is, if anything, only likely to make the rematch more meaningful.
Warragul has battled a raft of injuries to key players this season, at one point having more than 30 players unavailable for selection.
Key among those injuries have been long term sideline stints for major players - Jed Lamb, Sam Whibley and Mitch Smart are just some of the names who are gone for the season, while others like Tom Hobbs and Nick Mulqueen have spent multiple weeks out of action.
The result has been that the Gulls have not won since their round four victory over Morwell.
Thrashings have come only too often, with the pre-bye 147-point shellacking at the hands of Leongatha their worst result of the year.
It was also telling that the club was forced into forfeiting their reserves game that day as their injury toll left them unable to field a side.
For Drouin, the difficulty of this season has been less outside of their control.
The Hawks have well and truly entered the rebuild phase and have been trying to build consistency in their play as they try to figure out what will work best for them moving forward.
Their best footy has been scintillating, with coach Brent Clinnick encouraging a free-flowing, aggressive game style that emphasises putting speed on the ball as they use the width of the field.
When it's worked it's made the league's best take notice, but it's when it breaks down - usually due to unforced errors from the Hawks - that Drouin have had issues.
The result has been that the Hawks have been highly competitive in most of their matches, but had to wait until round 11 for their breakthrough win against Bairnsdale.
It does give them momentum coming into this game, and given their percentage the Hawks could find themselves up to eighth should they win here.
That, coupled with the arrival of superstar Gary Ablett Jr on the horizon the week after, and there's plenty of reason for think they could build a very nice patch of form over the next stretch of the season.
All these factors mean that both teams will be coming into this one fairly desperate to get the win - and we all know a win over the old rival always means that much more.
Other games
It's the second top three tussle in as many rounds when Wonthaggi hosts Leongatha in the 'South Gippsland Showdown'.
The Power are chock full of confidence having just knocked off fellow contender Moe - their eighth straight win.
They were made to work for it, but if they can follow that up with another win here against the reigning premiers they'll likely claim top spot and will be the new premiership frontrunner.
Traralgon plays Maffra as they continue their hunt for a top three finish.
The league currently has four sides trying to squeeze into three spots for a coveted double chance, and with the Maroons currently on they'll have to make their chances count.
Maffra's rebuild has shown some signs of life, but one would think Traralgon gets the job done here.
Morwell's fight for finals continues as they face off with Moe.
The Tigers have been up and down this year but remain just one game outside the top five. Their percentage is going to be an issue, however, meaning they're likely going to have to cause a few upsets to make it.
And there won't be too many upsets bigger than Moe, who will be wanting to bounce back following their second loss of the season.
Finally, Bairnsdale welcome Sale to their home ground in the other Sunday match-up.
The Redlegs missed their chance to keep in touch with the fifth-placed Magpies when they became the first team to fall victim to Drouin in what was a rather disastrous defeat for them.
Beat Sale here though and suddenly the equation changes.
The Magpies will be the odds-on favourites to keep their finals spot but too many slip-ups, like when they were beaten by Bairnsdale earlier this year, and that could change very quickly.