Andrew Button
DAYLESFORD is keeping a light workload in a short grand final week.
Bulldogs coach Andrew Button said recovery was important after a tough clash at Learmonth on Sunday.
The Bulldogs fought hard to shake off a third-quarter scare from Bungaree to claim a 45-point preliminary final win to book a spot in the Central Highlands Football League grand final.
Rival Buninyong had won its place from a clash with Hepburn a day earlier.
“We’ve got a few sore bodies, but nothing major,” Button said.
“Preparation’s a bit shorter after playing on Sunday so we’ll make sure all players recover well and are fresh for the weekend.”
The Bulldogs have qualified for a sixth-straight Bendigo Bank CHFL grand final at Eureka Stadium.
They are chasing the club’s first premiership since 2009 after losses to Hepburn and Waubra the past two seasons.
Button said it helped having a wealth of grand final and premiership experience in the senior playing group.
But the Bulldogs also had a couple of exciting young players in the mix.
Buninyong coach Joe Gilbert, who was a member of the club’s 2002 CHFL premiership, kept his cards close to his chest yesterday.
Gilbert said he had nothing to say at this stage and hoped to have more information on his team for a media briefing today.
The Bombers progressed to their first grand final since 2003 with an eight-point win against Hepburn in a preliminary final on Saturday.
In a tight, hard-fought clash, Buninyong trailed by 20 points at the final break and booted the only four goals of the fourth quarter to snatch a win.
The Courier will feature a CHFL grand final special, including team selections, in its First Bounce lift-out on Friday.
Inside The Courier today, don’t miss your Buninyong grand final poster.
Don’t miss your Daylesford grand final poster inside tomorrow.
melanie.whelan@thecourier.com.au