Bundoora staged one of the all-time great come-from-behind wins to claim the Division 1 reserves premiership.
Trailing by 26 points at the 11-minute mark of the final quarter, the Bulls kicked the final seven goals to claim a 13.3 (81) to 9.10 (64) grand final win over Whittlesea.
Jai Burns was awarded the best on ground medallion and was crucial in getting the Bulls over the line. Andrew Carmusciano also starred and finished with a game-high four goals.
Both sides hadn’t finished in the top-two, with Whittlesea ending the home and away season in third place, whilst the Bulls just scraped into the finals after a fifth-place finish.
Early on, Whittlesea was the more dominant outfit and had most of the attacking play. However, the Eagles squandered three early chances before a goal against the run of play to Andrew Carmusciano saw Bundoora claim a three-point buffer.
But the Eagles would soon get reward for effort, with goals to Matthew Langford and competition leading goal kicker Christian Prestopino in the space of five minutes giving their side a nine-point lead at quarter time.
Corey Rowe continued the momentum for the Eagles in the second quarter, with the lead extended to 15 points after his 8th minute goal.
Bundoora was then able to swing things back in its favour, ending the term with goals to Carmusciano and Lee Santoro to cut its deficit to just three points at the half time break.
An early goal to Carmusciano saw Bundoora reclaim the lead at the start of the third term, however from there Whittlesea took control of the contest and looked destined to finish its stint in Division 1 with a premiership.
Goals to Prestopino and James Robinson within a minute of each other saw Whittlesea take back the lead. The Eagles’ advantage was stretched further when Brent Toll and Mitch Taplin got in on the action to open up a 25-point lead.
Bundoora was able peg back a goal through Milad Almatrah to momentarily halt the Eagles, with the margin standing at 19 points at the last change.
Whittlesea looked to have the game sealed early in the final term, booting two goals to one inside the first 11 minutes to lead by a game-high 26 points.
They held the buffer until the 19-minute mark, before Bundoora’s comeback began with a trio of goals to Travis Keating, Santoro and playing-coach Shane Jacobs inside three minutes, which saw the momentum completely shift the Bulls’ way.
With the tension rising, another goal to James Lord cut the margin to just one point and when Jacobs converted another soon after the Bulls had miraculously pinched the lead.
Once ahead, Bundoora didn’t relent. The Bulls booted another two goals to storm to a famous premiership win, sparking rapturous scenes among the club’s fans who could barely believe the victory that had taken place.
Final siren: Whittlesea 9.10 (64) def by Bundoora 13.3 (81)
