DIGGERS Rest locked away third spot on the Riddell District Football League ladder with a hard-fought win against Romsey on Saturday.

The Burras displayed a greater authority over the contest but were unable to put the visitors away, ultimately winning 10.16 (76) to 10.6 (66).

“We had 13 scoring shots to seven in the first half, but we just didn’t convert,” Diggers Rest coach Shaun Sims said.

“We had a chance to give ourselves a gap but we never took it.

“It was good to get the win against a quality team.”

Sims bemoaned his team’s lack of discipline, giving away “five or six goals” through free kicks.

“Our effort was really good … we just made some poor decisions going forward, especially in the first half,” Sims said.

“We always want to be better … but we’ve put ourselves in a position where we’ll finish third, so we’ll have a fair crack from there.”

Corey Wright and Michael Evans were the premiership contender’s best, while Sims has been impressed with young ruckman Sean Egan.

Matthew Krul, Josh Wallace and Jordan Aitken should return next week, while Jamie Lobb (concussion), Tom Gleeson (leg) and Stephen Ruane (leg) suffered injuries on Saturday but should be right for finals.

“We are just looking forward to the finals starting really,” Sims said.

“It’s been a long year but this is what you play for, so we look forward to the step-up in intensity and pressure.”

Diggers Rest also hosted an International Cup game between Indonesia and China on Saturday.

Written by Geordie Cowan. Originally published by Sunbury Leader 13/8/2017 @ http://www.heraldsun.com.au/leader/localfooty/reigning-premier-diggers-rest-primed-for-rdfl-finals-assault/news-story/c25ca23b0dd11a7f97c2fe18aa25a713