Moama out to complete redemption arc

“I think they were motivated 10 minutes after last year’s grand final,” coach Rob Hogan said.

“So many of these boys have put in big pre-seasons, they barely miss training sessions, and they’re really keen to go one better than last year.

“The improvements in those boys who are now top agers has been remarkable, so that’s holding us in good stead.”

It looked like a rematch with Cobram would be the assignment, as both clubs dropped a single game, to each other, in the regular season, and had a far superior percentage to the rest of the league.

But that showdown hasn’t eventuated, with the Tiger crashing out to a plucky Deniliquin Rams in the preliminary final after Moama defeated them in the semi-final.

Now the Mowers must switch up preparations to take on a Rams’ side which made a run from fourth.

“We think we know how Deniliquin likes to play,” Hogan said.

“They’re very well coached, they’re a pretty disciplined side.

“I think we felt we had Cobram’s measure a bit, every time we’ve played against them, we’ve got better and better, so playing against Deniliquin throws a little bit of a spanner in the works, but I think we understand how they play and will hopefully be able to counteract that on Saturday.”

Moama has bested the Rams by at least 20 points in all previous meetings, and the Mowers stifling defence, which gave up a league best 317 points in the regular season, will be key to their hopes.

“Our backline have been sensational,” Hogan said.

“They’ve been the best in the competition from start to finish.

“I’m really big on that defence wins premierships, if you can keep the scores down, that certainly does help.

“We’ve got a few boys back there who just do their job every week, they don’t give away much, and they’ve probably been the cornerstone for us a little bit.”

Moama will take on Deniliquin Rams from 10.30am on Saturday at Moama Recreation Reserve.