The Ararat Rats are one win away from a B Grade premiership, as they take on the Warrack Eagles in the season decider on Saturday.
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The Rats were the standout team during the home and away season, losing just one game before winning the second semi-final to progress straight through to the Wimmera Netball Association grand final.
The Eagles finished the regular season in fourth position and will go into the final game of the season as heavy underdogs.
Rats coach Olivia West said the match is a big occasion but the team is looking forward to it.
“I do not think the girls are nervous, I think they are all excited about it,” she said.
“We have to go in confident otherwise I do not think the team will play as well if they don’t.”
The team had last week off, due to a semi-final win giving it a spot in the final.
West said the team kept to the same routine as they had used all season.
“It is just business as usual, we did our normal sessions with nothing too strenuous of course,” she said.
West will be looking for a team effort, rather than one or two players to stand out to get the team over the line.
She said players across all three thirds will need to be at their best and playing their role for the team to win the match.
“It needs to be an overall effort from everybody to get the win,” she said.
“We need to have scoring opportunities from all our centre passes and then convert from our turnovers to put pressure on the Eagles.
“Hopefully Jakki Gibson and Alex Antonio can keep going really well in our goal circle and score regularly to give us a good chance.
“And if our defenders can get on top of the goalies and rattle them early, that will be a bonus because at the end of the day, the goals at each end will be the key to winning.”
The team had a 55-31 win in the semi-final against Horsham Demons, something West said she hopes the team replicates.
“The last game we played was one of our best team games of the season and a four quarter effort," she said.
“Finals is always totally different to home and away matches but hopefully we can do it again to win it.”
The match will be played at Dimboola, something West said should not have too much impact on the result.
“We never really think of the travel as an issue, we are used to it given we are at one end of the association,” she said.
The final starts at 1.45pm.
