Diggers hammer Moore Park

Jay Cooper of Across The Waves and Luke Metcalf of Bingera compete for the ball at Martens Oval.

Mike Knott

THE Diggers juggernaut continued on its way on Saturday night, booking a grand final spot with an emphatic 5-0 defeat of Moore Park.

Michael Stayte reminded everyone that he could score goals too, bagging a hat-trick, while Paul Barlow and golden boot winner Nick Maas completed the drubbing.

Coming off 1-0 losses in their last two encounters, Moore Park considered themselves a shot at knocking off the undefeated minor premiers.

But Diggers slotted four unanswered goals in the first half and sent a message to both Moore Park and Across The Waves, who beat Bingera 1-0 to stay alive this season.

Coach Nathan Darlington still found some areas to improve on; unhappy with the space Moore Park were allowed deep in the Diggers defence.

Moore Park will have to bounce back fast if they want a rematch, with Waves, on a high after scraping into the final four.

A second-half goal to Waves’ co-captain Matt Martin was enough to end Bingera’s season and with it their Archem Premier League title defence.

There were plenty of chances at both ends but some clean work in goals, particularly from Bingera custodian Ben Heidenreich, kept the scoring to a minimum.

Two yellow cards to Matt Morrall means he will miss next weekend’s preliminary final – a crushing blow for the speedy forward and his team.

Meanwhile a hat-trick to Rebecca Hollindale helped Moore Park to an easy 6-1 win against Brothers Aston Villa in Friday night’s qualifying final.

Bingera’s Madelyn McCracken also notched three goals as Bingera kept their season alive with a 3-1 defeat of Waves.

Bingera now plays Villa to decide who meets Moore Park in the final.