The last bout of the season presented an interesting scenario. The Salties win over the Roadies in Bout 4 meant that the Roadies, Hearses and Salties were on two wins apiece at this stage of the season. To get into the Grand Final, the Roadies had to win by at least 56 points, which seemed unlikely given the belting the Hearses had been giving the other teams they had met so far in 2012. The Hearses simply had to win, or keep the points differential below 56. The first quarter was a call-response game, with lots of lead jammer status for the Woohoos but each team inching ahead at the same pace. The Roadies gained the lead early, but at half time the gap was a very reachable 23 points. But after the break, things changed. Despite some great efforts by the Hearses, it only took five minutes for the Roadies to increase their lead to around 60 points. Time and again, the Roadies met strong Hearse attacks with even stronger defence, such as in the memorable Guns-reversoGoGo match-up, and the Roadies won the bout by a few more points than they needed. A final score of RTR 233 to WH 166 took the Roadies through to the first and second place Grand Final playoff and gave the league some warning signs of the formidable force the Roadies presented in the 2012 Grand Final, playing with cool heads and a strong team focus.
