Whittlesea shrugged off a Shane Harvey-less North Heidelberg to book its place in the 2013 Division 2 Grand Final against the Fitzroy Stars.
The Eagles looked to have the preliminary final sewn up nearing the end of the third term when leading by 36 points, but a last quarter surge from the Bulldogs took the game right down to the wire.
In the end missed opportunities cost the Dogs as they went down 17.10 (112) 13.11 (89) at Eltham Central Reserve.
The Eagles looked dominant throughout parts of the match and, despite some fade-outs, were able to atone for their 51-point defeat against the Stars in the second semi final.
Andrew Fairchild was at his usual best and his five-goal haul took his season’s tally to 100, becoming the second player in Division 2 to reach the magical figure behind Harvey.
He did so with the final kick of the afternoon, getting paid a 50m penalty as the siren sounded to send the Eagles into the Grand Final on a high.
Whittlesea got off to a brilliant start, booting the first three goals of the game to amass a 19-point lead midway through the first term. With goals to Matthew Atta, Nathan Andrews and Fairchild, the Eagles were in prime position and had all the momentum.
But the Dogs dug their way out of what looked to be significant trouble and slammed on the next four goals of the game to take a five-point lead late in the term.
Kicked into gear, the Eagles once again stepped it up a notch and took back the lead with two quick goals within a minute.
The game quickly became a shootout as North Heidelberg responded with the next goal through some brilliant work from Andre Habchi.
A quick kick from the resulting centre clearance landed in John Green’s arms and he calmly slotted the shot at goal after the quarter-time siren to give North Heidelberg a five-point lead.
Despite facing a deficit, Whittlesea came out refreshed after the break and got off to a flyer courtesy of two Fairchild goals in the opening minutes of the second term.
The contest see-sawed throughout most of the quarter, with both sides exchanging goals, but it was ultimately Whittlesea who won the term to take a 19-point lead into the long break.
The Dogs started the third term better and were attacking from the outset. However, their good build up play was let down by some missed opportunities when making an avenue towards goals.
The Eagles on the other hand only needed one chance as Atta booted the first goal of the second half. He then followed up with another soon after to hand his side a commanding 32-point lead.
They weren’t done there, with Brenton Briffa kicking a brilliant snap goal to seemingly put the first nail in the coffin of North Heidelberg’s season as the margin stretched to 36 nearing three-quarter time.
But a late goal at the opposite end to Blake Holmes gave the Dogs some hope as they headed into the final term trailing by 30 points.
Playing with nothing to lose, North Heidelberg flew out of the blocks in the fourth quarter, booting the first two goals to cut the margin to 17 points.
As they had done so often throughout this match and the season, the Eagles were able to find a goal when looking troubled, courtesy of a calmly taken set shot from Atta.
North Heidelberg continued to fight out the game and slammed on the next two goals to get within nine points of the Eagles. With plenty of time left on the clock, the North faithful had genuine hope that a miraculous come-from-behind win could eventuate.
But it wasn’t to be a fairytale comeback as Whittlesea rounded out the game with the final two goals to go into the Grand Final – a just reward after claiming the minor premiership following a dominant home and away season.
On the back of losses to the Fitzroy Stars in their previous two encounters, the Eagles will head into the premiership decider as the slight underdogs in what is sure to be a thrilling clash at Preston City Oval.
North Heidelberg on the other hand is out of the finals race. Given the club’s long injury list throughout the year, a third-place finish was a credible achievement.
Final score: Whittlesea 17.10 (112) def North Heidelberg 13.11 (89)
