The Ballarat Red Devils suffered their first loss in the Goldfields Derby on Saturday night, going down 2-1 to Bendigo City after conceding two first-half goals.
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The hosts went into the round 26 fixture as firm favourites after coming off the back of three wins on-the-trot.
The Ballarat outfit was further bolstered by the return of Paul George, Daniel Tinker and Liam Harding to the senior squad.
Indeed, in the opening moments of the clash it looked as though it would again be Ballarat who held onto bragging rights.
David King gave the City keeper cause for concern in the first 15 minutes, with two headers narrowly missing the target.
Young gun Dejan Mitrovic looked to extend his scoring run in the 11th minute when he got onto the end of a cross, only to be denied by the legs of the diving keeper.
Michael Trigger also flirted with the goals in the early stages, rifling a ball over the crossbar as the visitors withstood the barrage.
However despite the plethora of early opportunities for the home side it was the visitors who would find the breakthrough, with Godwill Basha finding his sixth goal for the season.
Matthew Sporle doubled Bendigo’s lead in the 40th minute as things began to look dire for the Reds.
It took just four minutes in the second half for the Reds to receive reward for their offensive effort, with Pat Karras finding the back of the net following a scramble in the box.
From there the home side was able to wrestle back momentum as they searched for an equaliser. King again had the home fans on their feet before pushing the ball over the bar, while Karras narrowly missed his target after finding a Nelson Salvatore cross in the 74th minute.
While both George and Josh Romein tried their luck late in the match, they were unable to find the breakthrough as City registered its fourth win of the season.
The result brings to an end Ballarat’s recent good form, and all-but ensures that a top four finish is beyond their reach.
Things don’t get any easier for the Reds next week, when they travel to Epping Stadium to take on promotion contenders Whittlesea Ranges.
Whittlesea is currently in a three-way tussle for top spot on the west conference ladder with St Albans and North Geelong, and will be keen to redeem themselves from a 1-0 loss to the Moreland Zebras on the weekend. The Red Devils will also face North Geelong in their final fixture of the year.
The Reds could finish as low as seventh should they concede their remaining two matches.