FOOTSCRAY is licking its wounds after a failed comeback attempt saw it eliminated from the premiership race with a 30-29 loss to the Moorabbin Rams in the Victorian Rugby Union Premier 1 Dewar Shield semi-final on Saturday.
The Bulldogs were trailing by as much as 20 points with a little over 10 minutes remaining and they mounted a spirited fightback that would ultimately come up short by a measly point.
Bulldogs young gun Josh Kaifa said it was a show of character from his side to make a game of it late on after such a dull start.
‘‘We tried to pull it back, but it was a case of too little too late,’’ he said.
‘‘To come back like that, down 20 points and with only 10 minutes on the clock, it was a tremendous effort from the boys.’’
The late blitz could not mask the Bulldogs’ miserable start.
They were badly out of sorts for three-quarters of the game.
It was not until captain Allan Imo asked for one last-gasp effort that his side responded.
‘‘He put the challenge down to the boys,’’ Kaifa said. ‘‘He said we’ve got 10 minutes of our season and we’re not going down without a fight.
‘‘Have some fun and we definitely had that in the last 10 minutes.’’
The Bulldogs bowed out kicking and screaming.
Melbourne Lesa and Tuipine Apineru were inspirational in the late stages.
But the late flurry of points was not enough and the Bulldogs have a long summer to stew over the result.
Still, it was a fine season for coach Junior Naufahu and his players.
Given little chance of featuring in the finals, the Bulldogs provided plenty of shocks along the way.
‘‘Our goal was to take it out this year, so everyone is disappointed,’’ Kaifa said. ‘‘But it was definitely a good season for the club overall.
‘‘No one really rated us and everyone expected us to be towards the bottom of the table.
‘‘To make it to the semis was a really good achievement for the boys and for the club.’’
VRU finals
Dewar Shield: Semi-final: Moorabbin 30 d Footscray 29
Premier 3: Semi-final: Footscray 20 lt Harlequin 22
