AFTER suffering a shock loss to St Pat’s in the first grand final qualifier, Group 10 league tag minor premiers Bathurst Panthers are desperate to take their second chance when they face the Mudgee Dragons at Lithgow tomorrow.

The winner of that preliminary final will advance to meet the Saints on grand final day, while it is season over for the loser.

Bathurst Panthers are the two-time defending champions, but were unable to take a direct path to this year’s decider as they lost 12-4 to St Pat’s in the major semi-final.

It was just their second defeat this season and third loss in three years.

That record has Panthers as the favourites for tomorrow’s match, while their only prior meeting with the Dragons this year resulted in a 16-6 win.

Their round two clash, scheduled for Mudgee’s Glen Willow Stadium, was washed-out.

Missing out last weekend certainly stung the Panthers, but coach Dave Elvy is confident his team have learnt their lesson and will rebound against the Dragons.

“It’s disappointing and I suppose when you don’t lose too often it hurts. Pat’s are a quality team who have the players who know how to handle the big game situations,” he said.

“I’m still confident that we can improve and continue going on. You’ve just got to get it right on the day and hopefully the girls will have learnt from that game.”

Elvy is keen to set up a fourth-straight all-Bathurst league tag grand final next Sunday.

But he also knows he can not take a win over Mudgee as a given – his side will have to play well to earn a victory.

“I watched the Dragons when they played Pat’s here. They’ve done well. They finished fifth last year and fifth again this year, now winning two semis to get here. We’ve beaten them, but it was a close game,” Elvy said. 

“We were without several of our experienced players that day like Jess Hotham, Monique Christie-Johnson and Claire Woolmington. We’re playing better than we were back then, but you’d assume that Mudgee would be as well.

“Mudgee are a very physical side. It’s interesting considering it’s a non-contact sport, but they’re able to leave a lot of girls on their backside.

“We just need to forget about last week. We haven’t lost much in the past, but when we have we’ve been able to bounce back well.”

The match starts tomorrow’s preliminary final action in Lithgow, with kick-off at 10am.

BATHURST PANTHERS: 1 Amy Hewitt, 2 Brooke Wardle, 3 Stacey Elvy, 4 Gabrielle Bugg, 5 Paige Salas, 6 Monique Christie-Johnson (c), 7 Jess Hotham, 8 Yasmin Radburn, 10 Lauren Hillman, 11 Claire Woolmington, 12 Sarah Walsh, 13 Tiama Latu, 14 Claudia McLaren, 15 Nailani Lang, 17 Zarlia Griffiths.