Port Douglas dismissed fears of an early finals exit by adding another thumping to their 2010 record against Centrals Trinity Beach in Saturday's AFL Cairns preliminary final at Cazalys.
A week after losing their first semi-final against Cairns Saints at the same ground, the Crocs returned to the venue and made sure the result was vastly different by storming to a 16.25 (121) to 4.6 (30) victory.
The win sets up a grand final against Saints on Saturday, with Crocs player Brad Cooper relishing the chance of a rematch.
"We came up against a finals-hardened side in Saints (last week). They haven’t won back-to-to-back flags because they are a mug club," he said.
"They set the standard this time of year and showed us that well and truly.
"It’s all about next weekend now and hopefully we can bring our A game."
The Crocs took their time to shake off the challenge from the Bulldogs, who were trying to back-up their upset win over the Manunda Hawks the previous week.
The Bulldogs only trailed by 12 points at halftime and the Crocs did their best to keep their opponents in the contest with some woeful goal kicking when play restarted.
The Crocs could have won the game in the third term if they capitalised on their 50m entries, but inaccuracy and defensive pressure from the Bulldogs saw their score increase by increments of one instead of six.
Please read more at The Cairns Post, http://www.cairns.com.au/article/2010/09/13/126601_local-sport-news.html
Last Modified on 08/02/2011 10:53