WONTHAGGI Power heads into the Alberton Football League grand final against Yarram today hoping to shut out the furore over whether it should play in the competition.
The Power is the result of a 2005 merger between the major-league Wonthaggi Football Club and the minor-league Wonthaggi Rovers. The Power won the premiership in its first two years in the Alberton league, which is a minor league, and this year has lost only two games, both to Yarram.
The Victorian Country Football League believes the town of Wonthaggi, which has a population of about 7500, should have a club in a major league; its likely destination would be the West Gippsland Latrobe league. The Power has started legal proceedings to try to stay in the Alberton league.
When Power president Rob Tesoriero was asked yesterday about the club's legal proceedings, he referred questions to the club's solicitors. Of the Power's chances in today's grand final, he said there was no reason that club could not overturn its loss to Yarram in the second semi-final.
Yarram, under coach Ryan Underwood, led comfortably at three-quarter-time in that match. Wonthaggi Power, which is coached by Charlie Ware, rattled home with the wind in the last quarter but lost by 19 points.
Power full-forward Rod Tack kicked 13 goals in last week's preliminary final victory over Inverloch-Kongwak. His tally was one less than the Alberton league preliminary final record.
■Tatyoon goes into its grand final against Mininera and District league rival Hawkesdale-Macarthur today as the hottest favourite in the state.
Tatyoon finished the home-and-away rounds three wins clear of the second team, Caramut. Its percentage of 349 dwarfed the percentage of Caramut, which had 128.
Tatyoon's winning margin during the home-and-away rounds was more than 10 goals. It is going for its third consecutive flag.
■ The Sunbury Football Club has postponed the meeting in which it is to gauge members' views on a proposed move from the Ballarat league, most likely into the Essendon District league.
The club's committee felt that it did not have enough information to present to the members last Wednesday.
Sunbury today hopes to atone for its second semi-final loss to East Point when it takes on Ballarat in the preliminary final at the Eastern Oval in Ballarat.
■The plight of the Coreen and District Football League is highlighted by the two clubs that have won through to today's grand final at Rennie. Billabong Crows (Urana and Oaklands) and Coreen-Daysdale-Buraja-Hopefield United consist of mergers between six clubs that were mainstays of the competition for most of its existence. The Coreen league will fold after today's match, just two years short of its centenary year.
