What looked like a walk in the park for the Devils early on turned into a thriller down the stretch as the Butchers ran-in three second-half tries to peg back a 26-6 halftime deficit and get within four points of an epic comeback win.

The Butchers were playing for their finals future and it showed in their all-out assault on the Wests line in the dying stages but a combination of their flying start and some excellent scrambling defence was enough to hold on and claim the crucial two points. The Devils now host Berkeley at Parrish Park in the final round and, barring a monumental upset, will face Dapto in a major semi-final blockbuster in two weeks time.

“It ended up being a really good challenge,” Wests coach Brett Kimmorley said.

“You play at their home ground, there was a bit of atmosphere, they needed to keep winning to make the semi-finals so they obviously had plenty to play for. Last time we played them we were leading pretty comfortably and they scored three or four late tries so they’ve got some decent spirit here where they play for the full 80 minutes.

“We always thought it would be good 80-minute game, it was never going to be comfortable, and it became a really good fight for the last 20 minutes. We were six points ahead the game was on and there were chances where they could have won it and we were good enough to scramble and survive.

“Sometimes it’s not about your position or your skill it’s more about having a go and turning up for your mate and I think some of the tries the boys saved there were just about having a go. It’s the sort of challenge you want this time of year.”

The Devils got off to a flyer with Justin King and Lachlan Hurst both crossing in the opening six minutes for a 12-0 lead. Kayne Brennan scored on the end of a neat shift before Junior Vaivai snapped up a Jye Mullane grubber for a 20-0 lead after 19 minutes. The Butchers hit back when Ty McCarthy split the defence and found Luke Gallagher in support to cut the lead to 20-6 but Mullane’s try in the shadows of halftime gave the visitors a handy 26-6 buffer at the break.

Zac Lomax laid on a 50^th minute try for Matt Gallagher with a deft offload and when Hayden Crosland finished off a slick short-side play the comeback was in full swing. Luke Dodge and Jay Gallagher both went desperately close to scoring only to be denied by last-ditch Devils’ defence. 

Jarrad Whitty finally got across with five minutes to play to get within four but the Butchers couldn’t find a go-ahead try before the siren sounded on their season.