DIVISION ONE
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AN 89th minute wonder goal to Isaac Harbour has seen Ballarat claim its second consecutive Ballarat District Soccer Association men's division one premiership.
The danger man led the Reds to a 2-1 victory over Warrnambool when he pounced on an Adam Swards pass in the dying stages at Morshead Park on Saturday night.
Ballarat's win sees it claim a league-cup double in a golden season made even more impressive by the loss to the Rangers in the semi-finals.
Reds forwards Michael Lockyer and Kossivi Akakpo caused early headaches, before the latter suffered a heavy knock to the leg midway through the half and took no further part in the match.
Warrnambool was unable to gain the ascendancy on the scoreboard, despite dominating play for much of the opening stanza.
Strikes from Warrnambool's Dechlan Picken and Ahmed Ebeid failed to find the back of net as the Reds held strong to enter the break at 0-0.
The home side broke the deadlock shortly after with a fast break up the wing that saw Tom Callahan pass superbly to Lockyer, who slotted it past keeper Cameron Pyke for a 1-0 lead.
It took less than 10 minutes for Warrnambool to find an equaliser, with Martin van Rooy heading the pill in on Ballarat's last line of defence after a scrappy thrust forward.
The final 20 minutes of play were nothing short of frantic.
Warrnambool pinned the ball inside its attacking third, only for Ballarat to rebound time and again.
Eventually, Swards' jumped on a minor blunder in the Rangers' defence before setting up Harbour for a searing strike.
Nervous moments followed, with van Rooy and Ahmed Ebeid both missing gettable headers in the final seconds.
Ecstatic Ballarat coach Tony Clayworth paid tribute to the mental strength of his players.
"I thought they had the better of us in the first-half," Clayton said.
"We sort of talked at half-time - we were still in the game, it was 0-0 and I thought (that) we'd weathered the storm.
"The response was great, they dug in a little bit and worked their way back into the game."
Clayworth reserved special praise for youngster Callahan, as well as Swards and Lockyer - both of whom were playing just their second matches back from injury.
Meanwhile, a proud Warrnambool coach Nick van Rooy lamented his sides numerous wasted opportunities.
"We just didn't convert our opportunities that was the story of our first-half," van Rooy said.
"(I'm) very happy with how they played, the game was so back and forth that anything could have happened."
Ballarat veteran Nicholas Dean claimed man of the match honours after a dominant display in defence and through the middle.
WOMEN'S DIVISION ONE
SEBASTOPOL has ground out yet another Ballarat District Soccer Association women's premiership.
The Vikings secured a gritty 3-1 win over North United Black in windswept conditions at Morshead Park on Saturday afternoon.
North United, an overwhelming underdog, used a heavy tailwind to its advantage in the opening stages.
League leading goal scorer Jessica Dart found the back of the net 15 minutes in as the Vikings struggled with the difficult conditions.
Dart's attempt at a brace skimmed the crossbar at the half-hour point before the favourites began to work their way into the match.
Sebastopol levelled scores shortly after with a beautifully weighted strike from Meg Brennan, and then hit the front through Jess Steicke just before the half-time whistle.
A largely uneventful second-half yielded just one goal, with Breanna Coombes striking again to give her side a two-goal lead midway through the closing stanza.
The Panthers pressed hard in the final 10 minutes, but were unable to break through a Sebastopol defence that remains undefeated in the past two seasons.
Joann Lardner was awarded player of the match honours after a stellar performance in the middle.
The premiership marks Sebastopol's second in a row, with the club also claiming league honours for the 2014 season.
"They got the jump on us pretty quickly," Vikings coach Peter Maggi said.
"I think our experience and skill that saw us get over the line in the end.
"A good team will always find a way to win and that's what we've been like this year.
"They (Coombes and Steicke) hit their strikes cleanly - it's the stuff we practice and it pays off in the end."
Maggi paid tribute to brother Anton and Vikings state league coach Michael Busija for assisting with coaching duties during the season.
"It makes for a great atmosphere at the club when you've got those high level guys helping out," he said.
Outgoing Panthers coach Jeff Muscat praised his young sides performance.
"The main aim was to hold them out for 20-25 minutes, which we did," Muscat said
"We said if we'd won the toss we'd go with the wind and we've always given them tough games."
"I'm very proud of their efforts."
Muscat has called it quits as head coach after seven years at the helm - a period in which North United played in five grand finals, winning three.