DRAGONS BLOW GOLDEN CHANCE
BELL Park coach Luke Rayner has reiterated his belief that the season will go down as a missed opportunity for his team after it fell to Colac in yesterday’s first semifinal.
The Dragons have now lost their past six finals dating to 2013, with yesterday’s defeat a bitter pill to swallow for a side that had won 11 of its last 12 home-and-away games of the year.
Rayner said despite the fact it was tight at the top end of the table, the immediate feeling was that a chance to progress deep into this season’s finals series had slipped through Bell Park’s hands.
“We could have finished fourth, we could have finished third or we could have finished second. We got second, but we were two points in front of St Mary’s and four points in front of Colac, so there wasn’t much between those three sides in particular during the year,” he said.
“You don’t go into finals thinking we finished second so we’re going to wipe these two sides, or lose to St Mary’s and then front up and just wipe Colac.
“We certainly didn’t have that mindset because we knew how competitive they had been throughout the year and how close it really had been.
“It’s not an excuse, you’re still very disappointed . . . but I still view it as a missed opportunity.”
The Dragons had their chances throughout the gruelling encounter and held a five-point lead at the final break, but fell short after the Tigers pounced late in the match.
Ruckman Zane Vail, who has shouldered the load in the ruck for the entire season, announced his retirement after the game.