Although finding themselves under pressure early from a determined Wagga Brothers outfit, the Junee Diesels have waltzed into the first week of finals for the Group 9 First Grade Premiership on the back of a 48-22 win at Geohex Stadium on Saturday.
Going into half-time at 12 points apiece, the Diesels’ quality across the park proved too much for Brothers to handle in the second-half albeit with lapses in concentration allowing the home side to stay within reach at times.
The Diesels, who haven’t played finals football since 2018, are yet to put a complete performance together despite recording 11 wins for the season – a scary thought for opposition sides.
Junee coach Damian Willis said a familiar issue again reared its head in Saturday’s win.
“Unforced errors were our Achilles heel again on the weekend. We are lucky we are super fit and have plenty of strike power to still be winning, but we need to be better at completing high and building pressure.” Willis acknowledged.
The ‘building pressure’ component of the Diesels’ game will need to be at its absolute best this weekend against perennial grand finalists, Gundagai Tigers.
Having given themselves every chance of going deep into the finals series by finishing the season proper in third position, the Diesels head to the scene of their Round 1 victory and will no doubt be oozing confidence that is gained from six consecutive victories.
When pressed for what Junee would need to do to replicate their opening round success over the Tigers, Willis said a big focus would be placed on areas of the game they can influence themselves.
“We need to ensure we control what we can control and that’s parts of the game that require no talent. Things such as line speed, kick chase, communication and willingness to work hard for each other.”
There is no man better placed to understand the enormity of what lies ahead for the Diesels than Willis himself, who was a winner of multiple premierships with the Tigers.
And with that knowledge and experience, Junee supporters can be assured their team will be prepared to the nth degree for the challenge that awaits them on Sunday afternoon.
“Anything less than a Grand Final appearance is seen as a failure in Gundagai, they always know how to perform at this time of year. So we are under no illusion to the fact this is our biggest test so far this year. But we will be ready.”
In a huge plus for the Diesels, Chase Bernard will return this week after sitting out the win against Brothers, while others to miss last weekend’s match and will be available for selection against Gundagai include Eli Crozier, Jesse Wainibuli, Jordan Walker and Jakeem Morgan.
The depth of talent in the current playing squad for the Diesels creates a welcome headache for the coaching staff – a problem Junee may not have had in recent years, and one that is accurately reflected in their success so far this season.
In addition to the Diesels’ First Grade side being a part of Sunday’s Qualifying Final, earlier in the day the Diesels’ women’s tackle side has finished the regular season in second spot, defeating the previously unbeaten Wagga Brothers last weekend.
The Ladies will play South City, with the winner earning the right to play Brothers the following week for a place in the Grand Final.
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