THERE was to be no unthinkable upset in the Greater South West Junior Football League (GSWJFL) Under-17 grand final, as Coleraine downed Tyrendarra by 80 points at Heywood on Sunday.

Coleraine’s premiership win capped off a dazzling season in which not a single game was in doubt virtually from the first bounce, as the Maroons headed into the finals with a comical percentage of 970.07.

As such, in spite of the game ending with another lopsided scoreboard, this was a rare occasion where the Maroons were pushed by a determined opposition in the contest which ended, 17.13 (113) to 5.3 (33).

Coleraine coach, Paul Bosch said as much after the game, commending the Darras on a strong showing.

“The scoreboard didn’t reflect the closeness of this game at all… we had a few set plays to run, and we weren’t able to get them going because of the fact that they put too much pressure on our link-up play,” he said.

“It took a while for our boys to settle, but when they did, they were fantastic.”

Bosch added that having to push for a result, even if it was only in the early stages of the contest, made this victory even more satisfying than their last.

This season has had the added complications of managing illness and isolation requirements with the playing group, and he said to manage that as well as they did was a credit to the club.

“We had to work hard to get a team on the paddock each week, but it’s to the credit of these boys that they play for each other,” he said.

The umpires had a tough job deciding who was most deserving of the medal for best on ground, but ultimately settled on Maroons gun, Jackson Templeton.

Ben McKelvie, Daylin Plush, Jordan Walter, Rhyan Menzel and Zander Beardsell were other Coleraine players who put together a quality effort to cap off their season.

Tyrendarra also got some outstanding performances from players across the park, including Ethan Williams, Kade Wilson, Lachlan Steele, Andy Paterson, Marcus Willey and Kaden Wilson.

Darras coach, Michael Doherty, was proud of what his entire group achieved this season, despite ultimately coming up short.

“I’m super impressed and proud with how the boys have gone about it, for the last three or four weeks we’ve really been building towards this game,” he said.

“I just think their attitude and commitment has been amazing, and it showed in the first half.

“Some things didn’t go our way in the second half, but regardless I’m proud of their effort today.”

Doherty said his side had not been intimidated by the strength of their opposition, saying it was evident from their performance that they genuinely believed they could win.

“We knew we were capable of winning today, but we have to give Coleraine credit, they’ve been the benchmark all year,” he said.

“We’ve learned from playing against them this year, and hopefully the boys can carry some of that experience into the future.

“At the end of the day, I’m just glad to see as many kids as possible out here playing sport, and it bodes well for a strong competition in juniors for the future.”