Green Gully has fallen at the last hurdle in the Dockerty Cup.
The Cavaliers were beaten 1-0 in extra time by the Bentleigh Greens in a tense final at Broadmeadows Valley Park.
Ryan Paczkowski scored the winner for the Greens in the 92nd minute.
Cavaliers general manager Raymond Mamo was disappointed for his hard- working team but acknowledged the worthy winners.
“I’ve got to admit, Bentleigh Greens are the benchmark; they’ve got a really good side,” he said. “They’re the top side in the NPL and probably the best in the league.
“We did very well to hold them for almost 120 minutes.”
Green Gully still has plenty to play for. The Cavs lost their last home-and-away game of the season 4-2 away to South Melbourne on Sunday but qualified fifth for the NPL finals. They play an elimination final against Oakleigh Cannons at Jack Edwards Reserve this Friday at 8pm. There’s also a tasty FFA Cup round-of-16 battle for Green Gully when it faces Melbourne Knights at Knights Stadium on Tuesday at 8pm.
The Knights finished the NPL season in ninth place after a 2-1 loss to Pascoe Vale on the final day. In NPL2, St Albans took the local bragging rights over Sunshine George Cross, winning 1-0 win at Churchill Reserve.
