Dandaragan upset Cervantes and move into their first grand final since 2015

Dandaragan took down top side Cervantes in the second week of Central Midlands Coastal Football finals to advance into the grand final. Minor premiers Cervantes were looking for a fifth straight premiership, or their 14th of the past 15; 19th of the past 21; and 26th of the past 29 grand finals. Cervantes hoped to book a trip to their 31st grand final in club history, but Dandaragan had other plans. During the home-and-away season, the two teams met three times, with Cervantes winning twice. The game opened in the Saints’ favour, keeping the Tiger Sharks to only nine points in the first quarter. This was a trend for Cervantes — the only times they recorded a single-digit score in the first quarter was against Dandaragan in their three previous matches. The trend continued as the Tiger Sharks managed to bounce back in the second quarter with an extra four goals, but the Saints didn’t slow down either as they built up an 8.4 (52) scoreline going into half-time. While the Tiger Sharks began building their tally up in the second half, the Saints continued to match their scoring and the margin between the teams never closed. Dandaragan held on to claim victory with a 13.11 (89) to 9.15 (69) win over Cervantes. It is the Saints’ first grand final berth since 2015 and they hope to claim their third premiership in club history, having last won it in 2007. The Saints’ winning effort came off the boots of Todd Kenny, Campbell Putland and Matthew Tilbee, who each had two goals, while the Tiger Sharks’ big players were kept quiet in the game, but Jacob Green still scored three. Cervantes will now face their rivals Jurien Bay on Saturday for a chance to take on Dandaragan in the grand final. The preliminary final will be at Cervantes Town Oval on August 26, with bouncedown at 2.15pm. The Tiger Sharks had much more success in other grades, as their reserves beat Jurien Bay 12.10 (82) to 3.4 (22), punching a ticket to their ninth straight grand final. Cervantes’ Little League side nabbed a 60-point victory over Jurien Bay to go to a third straight grand final. The Saints also had a win in the netball as they claimed a nine-point win over the Bulldogs. In the hockey, Moora claimed a 4-1 victory over Dandaragan, with the Mavericks’ goals coming from Cheyenne Dodd, Eddie Watson, India Hargreaves-Tieland and Sophie Galbraith.