Albury will host its 40-year premiership reunion against Lavington.

The latter had joined the league only in 1979 and the grand final clash just three years later was to be the first of six between the pair.

Premiership coach Tom Doolan admits he's not sure what sparked such an intense rivalry so quickly.

"It was just there," he admitted.

"Some of my great friends now are from that Lavington team, I see (Peter) Copley, (Doug) Norton-Smith, we see those guys all the time somewhere, I still see a fair bit of Ray Mack."

There were a number of memorable moments around the game, including Albury's banner which read, 'You don't need pokies to win today's jackpot'.

Lavington was backed by the neighbouring sports club.

"I can clearly remember the banner as we ran out, it was pretty spectacular actually," Doolan offered.

The Tigers won by 34 points, but Lavington toppled the Tigers the following year.

Albury has since won the 1985, 1996, 2015 and 2016 deciders.

Over the last decade, the Tigers have won 17 off the 22 clashes.

As has often been the case, there's an enormous amount riding on the result, for at least one outfit.

The Panthers have stunned the competition by pushing through to the top five, with only three games left.

The club didn't pick up profile players like a number of outfits, although it must be said Albury was quiet in the recruiting stakes.

Former Turvey Park teenager Billy Glanvill has wowed the competition, racing to the lead in league contested possessions with 191.

Raiders' Isaac Muller is next on 162.

Glanvill's team-mate Tom Hargreave's third on 151, while co-coach Anthony Miles is Albury's leader.

It's hard to recall a better effort than Lavington's in recent years.

The club was expected to fill the bottom three, but an upset win over Albury could prove crucial in their finals hopes.

Basically, it's D-Day for Lavington and Wangaratta Rovers.

The latter trails by a percentage of just 0.41.

Rovers are away to an improving Corowa-Rutherglen on Saturday.

The Hawks will start slight favourites, while the Panthers are outsiders.

If the results follow the odds, the final five is realistically over with Rovers almost certain to face Myrtleford in the elimination final.

IN OTHER NEWS:

However, if the Panthers spring an upset and Rovers lose, the latter would need to beat Albury in round 18.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: