LINKED and Glory Glory were locked at 4-4 as the full time siren sounded in the Grand Hotel touch football grand final on Friday night.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Two minutes of extra time ensued with both squads dropping to just five players.
With plenty of side-to-side play it was desperate defensive plays keeping the score deadlocked.
The clock wound down and teams were reduced to four players for an additional two minutes.
The crowd was on its feet awaiting a game-winning play from either side.
The finale came from Linked’s James Bower-Scott and Madison Parbery, with Bower-Scott offloading a clever ball for Parbery to dash 15 metres and score in the corner.
Defensive play arrived just a fraction too late to stop the move.
Glory Glory had led for most of the match only to see Linked draw level.
The Shepherdson brothers Shannon, Josh and Kyle were everywhere while Scott Barton tried hard in the game and Cael Kelly was monitored closely by the Linked defence.
Standouts for the winners were Parbery, Bower-Scott and Dillon and Allen Aldridge.
Active EP overcame a 2-3 deficit at half time to defeat the Friesians 7-5.
The Bobbin girls along with Sam Matthews flew the flag well for the women, while the lads had plenty of pace to spare.
The Friesians were well in the contest with strong contributions from Jarrod Tamatea and Ryan Apps.
The Bandits continued their fine form to pick up a 6-4 win in the C grade grand final.
The Knights tried hard, but the bustling defence of the Bandits saw the Knights turn over the ball under pressure, but big guns Wayne Northey and the Fullers were prominent.
D grade winners were Oakdale over the popular Surf n Turf combination.
Oakdale led by Jye Elliot proved a bit too tricky for Surf n Turf side, whose young guns were unable to crack the Oakdale defence.
Surf n Turf are expected to go from strength to strength with the young guns gaining valuable experience.
Organisers said they were thrilled with the 18 teams entered and with the standard of the competition overall.
Peter Turner of the Grand Hotel was thanked for his sponsorship of this growing competition, and players also thanked Allan Wilton for his hard work as well as other volunteers.
