Riding high after their victory over Souths Inala, the Mustangs Division 2 men finished their regular season with a bang, with halfback Cameron McHugh earning man of the match honours for firing his team up.
A forfeit by Rochedale ahead of the Division 3 match meant their season ended with a whimper, but several players were called up to support their Division 2 brothers.
Although neither team scored in the first 15 minutes, play at Chambers Flat was anything but slow with the home team defending their line against several consecutive offensives by Slacks Creek.
The Mustangs soon gained the upper hand as after several bruising runs by Chris Leifi and Bernetti Graff weakened the defensive line centre Daniel Brownbill was able to open the scoring.
This was followed by a chip and chase play by Scott Taavale, who found Exodus Semau with a pass after sending a grubber through the defensive line.
With another two tries scored by Leifi and Brownbill, the Mustangs ended the first half solidly in front, with the scoreboard reading 18-6.
Taking the field after their halftime break things seemed to turn against the Mustangs and Slacks Creek clawed back two tries to level the score.
After a knock-on in goal by their opposition, the Mustangs once again seized the upper hand after second-row Miti Tuatai broke the line and put more points on the board.
This was followed up by another try by Semau, a full-field try by Tyson Potts and a final try scored by Bryton Inwood, leaving the final score 38-18.
Coach Gerard Adams said his team had again shown resilience, but there was still work to be done ahead of the upcoming finals matches.
"The resilience was good again this week," he said.
"The boys keep turning up for each other. It's also very good to have a few of the boys back from injury.
"We just need to fix the habit of going to sleep around half time."
After their success last weekend, the Mustangs men are firmly in second place on the ladder and will play Slacks Creek again this weekend in the first round of finals games.
The coach said a premiership was within reach.
"If we show up and play our brand of footy, I'm very confident of a win," Adams said.
If you have a sports story to share, send it through to joe.colbrook@austcommunitymedia.com.au.
Joe Colbrook
Journalist at The Examiner, covering local government and planning, emergency services, breaking news and court. Send tips to joe.colbrook@austcommunitymedia.com.au. Ex-Jimboomba Times, UQ Alumni
Journalist at The Examiner, covering local government and planning, emergency services, breaking news and court. Send tips to joe.colbrook@austcommunitymedia.com.au. Ex-Jimboomba Times, UQ Alumni
