St Albans’ hopes of playing in the Western Region Football League finals appear all but over after a disastrous weekend.
The Saints suffered a nine-point loss to Sunshine and now sit two games outside the top five with just four rounds remaining.
In a crunch-time match, St Albans made the perfect start, booting four first-term goals to none to open a 26-point lead at quarter-time.
In front of home fans, Sunshine players rallied during a much-improved second term.
The Kangaroos kicked six goals to one and entered the half-time break leading by a point.
The momentum that had built during the second quarter continued after the main break as Sunshine found an answer to every challenge.
Led by strong performances from Luke Allan and Jesse McLellan, the Kangaroos booted seven second-half goals to secure the 13.9 (87) – 11.12 (78) win.
On a tough day for his side, Anthony Cristofaro fought hard and finished the match with two goals.
Timothy Jenkins and Jarrod Tuppen were also impressive.
Further impacting St Albans’ finals push was an upset win for Altona. The Vikings knocked off second-placed Hoppers Crossing by five points, putting themselves forward as a likely finals contender. Altona is now fifth on the division 1 ladder, six points ahead of sixth-placed Sunshine.
The Vikings play only one more match against a fellow top-five side during the home and away season and, regardless of the result, have a clear advantage in the race to the finals.
Elsewhere at the weekend, Spotswood got the better of Albion by 36 points.
The Woodsmen recovered from a two-point deficit at half-time.
They then booted 12 second-half goals, which well and truly sealed the 18.15 (123) – 12.15 (87) win.
