We’re in the last five rounds of the season, but only one spot in senior Ovens and King football finals is up for grabs, and the two teams most likely to fill it go head-to-head this weekend.

Current fifth-placed side Greta host sixth-placed Bonnie Doon this Saturday in round 16, with both sides entering the weekend even on premiership points.

Given Milawa and King Valley sit two games behind the duo, the Blues and Bombers are likely the only direct competitors for just one spot in finals.

When last they met, it was the red and black who saluted, knocking off Greta to the tune of 32 points back in round nine.

Since then, Greta has gone 3-2, a continuation of their topsy-turvy season.

“There’s no doubt it’s been up and down, but we know our best footy is still really strong, it’s just a matter of doing it consistently,” Blues senior coach Chris Dube said.

“For the first time for a while, we’re probably fighting for that consistency, but I think some things are starting to take shape.

“The boys clearly want to put their best foot forward at the right time of the year.”

Dube said the Bombers battle was the perfect chance for Greta to stake their claim for a spot in the postseason.

“There’s no hiding the fact we’re playing a side we’re probably competing with for the last slot in the finals,” he said.

“It is spoken about, but we haven’t had the luxury of looking too far ahead, which in some ways has been a real positive for us.

“This week we’re playing a side that are really honest, hard-working, they make you work for a win, so if we don’t play good football we won’t win, and I don’t expect us to win any more with bad football.

“You always want to review what went right and what went wrong if you’re playing an opponent for the second time.

“We acknowledge they got a lot right and we got a lot wrong, and that won’t automatically change, so we have to be better than we were.

“It’s a proud group and I’ve seen a response every time it’s been called for this year, and I just keep reminding the players winning is hard.”

One area where the Blues may have an edge is their sheer offensive capability.

While both teams are with one point of each other in terms of points conceded (Greta have conceded 924, Bonnie Doon 925), the Blues have kicked 313 points more than the Bombers.

Greta has three players within the top 15 goal kickers in the league (Harry Moran with 46 goals, Frazer Judd with 31, Cody Crawford with 28), while the Bombers’ only representative is James Law with 29.

“When we get on top, we can really pile some goals on, we’ve got some very potent mids and forwards, but at the same time I think we’ve just been matched against the better sides,” Dube said.

“It’s a wonderful test to be playing a side in the same position as us.

“Does having more points mean we’re going to kick more points? No – past performance won’t dictate future performance, if we’re not prepared to roll our sleeves up.

“Bonnie Doon have got a knack of being able to keep higher-scoring sides to less, so that’s a credit to their overall defence and the way they play across the field.”

The clash between Greta and Bonnie Doon commences at 2pm this Saturday at the Greta Recreation Reserve.