Unanderra Hearts look to bounce back in crunch District League finals battle

The Hearts finished their District League campaign in second spot after falling 2-0 to Fernhill in the last regular season round.

Now, their attention will turn to Saturday afternoon's qualifying final against Picton at Unanderra Oval.

At stake? The winner will get the chance to meet minor premiers Oak Flats in a grand final qualifier next week, while the losing side faces a sudden-death semi-final.

"Last weekend wasn't the end to the season I had hoped for. Irrespective of Oak Flats winning, I wanted to finish the year on a high. It was our worst performance to date," Williams said.

"But "I'm confident we will bounce back this week. We have been very consistent over the 11 rounds, with eight wins and only three losses.

"We will be fired up to get a crack at Oak Flats, but as I'm well aware, in finals football nothing is given away. It has to be earned."

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No matter what happens in the finals, Williams said it had been a great season for the Hearts.

"We are happy to finish second, given the stop-start nature of this year," the coach said.

"We had the top goal scorer in the league, Mark Picciolini has about 22 goals and won the Golden Boot. He had plenty of other supporting players, Dom Macgill, Luke Picciolini, Joel Perry, Christian Plakias and Michael Saverino, all ensuring a big year for us."

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In Saturday's other District League clash, Helensburgh will host Fernhill in an elimination final at Elizabeth Park.

The Thistle finished their regular season campaign with a 2-1 over Shell Cove, while the Foxes' victory over Unanderra saw them jump up from seventh to fifth spot to make the finals.