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THE Ovens and Murray’s chances of returning as an interleague force have taken another hit with Brendan Fevola stepping down as coach in the wake of the league’s 10-point loss to Peninsula at Albury Sportsground on Saturday.
Fevola told his players after the match the time was right for a change in direction after the competition plummeted to a fifth versus sixth play-off match against Hampden next season.
The former Carlton star, who had to be assisted from the ground after receiving a knock to the head during the third quarter, conceded the Ovens and Murray was outplayed for most of the clash.
“It’s disappointing but the boys have been great over the past two years,” Fevola said.
“When I took the job on I said I wanted to get us back to No. 1 and we haven’t been able to do that so now it’s someone else’s turn.”
In a thrilling finish, the Ovens and Murray fought back from a 29-point deficit in the third quarter to hit the lead at the 18-minute mark of the final term when Albury star Brayden O’Hara goaled from 40 metres.
But Peninsula responded to the challenge by kicking the final two goals of the match to advance to next year’s No.1 play-off match against country championship heavyweight Geelong.
“I can’t remember a lot of the game, but Peninsula doubled us in inside 50s and deserved to win,” Fevola said.
“Our boys didn’t give up though and we nearly pinched it in 20 minutes of football.”
Peninsula coach Troy Shannon said it was a day of redemption for his league.
“Our league was embarrassed by Geelong last year and we had to do something about it,” Shannon said.
“We had to win today as when you get down to five versus six it’s a long way back.
“We played a taxing style of game today and the Ovens and Murray were always going to come back at us so I was really pleased with the way the boys stood up in the final 10 minutes.”
It was a particularly dirty day for Yarrawonga with Fevola concussed and his Pigeon teammate Tim Cooper suffering a potentially serious quad injury.
Cooper spent the final quarter on the bench with his thigh strapped.