WITH a win guaranteeing a grand final place, the Sawtell Panthers travelled south to Nambucca Heads on Sunday to take on the Roosters.

Footy fans were treated to a warm sunny afternoon, with the playing surface unaffected by last week’s deluge.

The sides were evenly matched in the early minutes, playing at the high tempo expected of finals footy.

The players’ first breather came after ten minutes when the clock was stopped for injured Rooster Jacob Welsh.

Once the clock restarted, play was punctuated by both teams missing point-scoring opportunities due to handling errors and penalties.

Nambucca’s Jay Melrose was then sent to the bin with less than fifteen minutes left in the half.

Despite being a man down, the home side lifted.

Thirty minutes in, Brodie Simon erupted through the Panthers defence on the back of a Tyronne Roberts-Davis line break to light the scoreboard up for the first time.

Roberts-Davis dispatched the conversion, taking the score to 6-0.

The fired up Roosters then racked up another try six minutes later.

Willy Baker stepped around defenders and ran 45 metres to score, converted again by Roberts-Davis.

The points pile on continued in the closing moments of the half a Dean Goodwin try.

Another successful Roberts-Davis kick took the score to 18-0.

The Panthers opened the second half by fighting back, taking the ball forward methodically from the kick off.

With less than two minutes gone Sawtell captain/coach Sam Johnstone put the finishing touches on a great team try.

Ten minutes into the second half a try by Sawtell fullback Jake Thornton put the Roosters on notice, with the home side’s lead now eroded to just six points.

With the Roosters now a man down, Sawtell’s Johnstone crossed the line again.

The successful conversion evened the scores at 18-18 with just over ten minutes left on the clock.

Penalties trended massively against the home side in the second half, giving the Panthers plenty of possession to work with.

This factor, combined with the clock running out, had Coronation Park’s largest crowd this season up on their feet.

With the game in the balance, Nambucca’s Logan Jones picked up a Sawtell dropped ball and broke the deadlock, giving his side a four point lead – 22-18.

In the closing minutes the Panthers came close to getting back in front, particularly through some strong runs at the line by Johnstone.

The clock ran out however, with the Roosters securing a direct path to the Grand Final in Coffs Harbour on September 1.

The Sawtell Panthers will now play at home next week against Woolgoolga, with the winner to meet Nambucca in the Grand Final.

By Mick BIRTLES