The Hawks had numerous chances to beat Port last week in the qualifying final but some poor finishing let them down.
So instead of a place in the grand final and having the week off they now have a date with Central Augusta.
The Bloods was ruthless, tough, uncompromising, disciplined and brilliant against the Lions on Sunday and seem to be “peaking at the right time”.
That is, the team looks balanced, the game-plan honed and with so many options in each position has the ability to be flexible and thus adapt to whatever is presented to it.
Westies is very good at using the expanses of Central Oval with a cast of Hawks that can run through lines and carry and pump the ball into the terrific full forward Hayden Warren, the prolific half forward Matt Woodforde and the atmospheric Shannon Page.
But it is West’s half back-line that is its strength, Noll, Jordan Warren, Dadleh, Higgins and the skipper of the Port Augusta Football League team of the year Adam Zubrinich who rallies the defence and launches attacks.
The Bloods also has a very settled back-six and a go-forward midfield that has the in-and-under, defensive and attacking abilities that can match the Hawks.
The Bloods will win this even if the centre-clearances are even as they has far more scoring options.
On Saturday against the Lions the forward-line at one stage had Fuller, Baker, Curnow, Allen, Keatley and Sean Dawson, who kicked 10 from a pocket!
Since 2006 these two teams have met 12 times, with the ledger even at six-apiece.
This season West has won three of the four meetings including the most recent in round 14 when the Hawks won by 41 points.
When these two play each other it is a high-scoring affair and this week should be no different.
The Bloods has to work out a way of keeping the influence of Nic Collins to a minimum and if they can do that they will go a long way to winning.
Very difficult result to forecast but if the Bloods play at anything less than the intensity it displayed against the Lions it will get done.
West Augusta is a side that runs and runs and doesn’t give-up if they have their “kicking-boots” on in front of the sticks, Centrals will be in real strife.
Central Augusta fully realise that the premiership window is slightly ajar and that a tilt at its first flag since 1992 is reachable and this may cause some nerves whereas the Hawks seem to play on instinct and let the scoreboard look after itself.
This could go either-way but I will back the Bloods this week as it just seems to have all the boxes ticked this time around.
Of interest: Centrals became the first team in SGL history to field three Madigan Medallists in the one game on Sunday when Shane Curnow (1991), Matt Keatley (2005 & 2007) and Mark Fuller, this season’s recipient, lined up against the Lions.
Tip: Centrals 20 points.
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