JARROD Hayse lived every footballer’s dream with a goal after the siren to hand Myrtleford a one-point victory over Wodonga Raiders.
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Hayse calmly slotted a goal from 45m out in the scoreboard pocket of Birallee Park to deliver the Saints one of their most memorable victories and a hammer blow to the Raiders’ finals prospects.
The Raiders, who led by 44 points at half-time, drop to sixth after being over-run by the Brad Murray-inspired Saints after the break.
Hayse did his former club Wangaratta, where he is a dual premiership player, a massive favour, with the Magpies moving back into the top five ahead of a final-round showdown with Wodonga.
The Raiders looked to have done enough to secure victory when Jack Di Mizio laid a huge tackle on Nathan Cossignani as the Saint ran into goal in the final minute.
But Hayse found space after the Raiders turned the ball over in the middle of the field and used every bit of his experience to seal a 11.8 (74) to 11.7 (73) victory.
“I knew there wasn’t long to go because I had heard (Raiders coach Daryn) Cresswell screaming from the bench when there was one minute to go,” he said.
“I was cramping in my calves and I thought I could really embarrass myself … but I was always going to take the shot.”
Yarrawonga’s five-point victory over Lavington rules Myrtleford out of a top-three finish but Hayse said the Saints would take enormous belief into finals after beating the Pigeons, Magpies and Raiders in the past three weeks.