It was a game that had everything - and then some.
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You could say that it was the game we were destined to have in this unprecedented year of the virus.
Undefeated minor premiers Oxley Vale Attunga looked to turn back the clock to their glory years by beating a Tamworth FC side who finished a point behind them on the ladder and eyed a third-straight title.
There was the dramatic early goal - a close-range, powerful header by veteran FC striker Kurt Barrow.
And then there was the continuation of a fast-placed and physical encounter worthy of a finale between sides bulging with big-match players, as OVA desperately searched for the equaliser and Tamworth FC chased the killer blow.
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But when the forecast storm hit at the end of the first half, with FC up 1-0, it was feared that the weather - complete with lightning - would land the killer blow and the match would be abandoned.
(Northern Inland Football would have decided if the match was replayed. Had it not been replayed, OVA, as the minor premiers, would have won the title because 75 per cent of a game needs to be completed for there to be a result.)
Luckily, that did not occur. And after a delay of just over an hour, the second half commenced.
It was the reigning two-time premiers who looked the sharpest after the protracted break, producing two good scoring opportunities in quick succession - the first requiring OVA keeper Josh Magann to deliver a full-stretch, one-handed save.
Magann and FC keeper Owen Rogers were excellent all night.
In fact, you sensed OVA would have to conjure up something special to beat Rogers - a veteran with years of first-grade experience in Sydney to call on - and that was what happened.
In the 63rd minute, Sam Higgins - one of several renowned Mushies who returned this year to lead a revolution after two lean years - unleashed a long-range, left-foot blast that he struck perfectly: the ball ricocheting off the crossbar for the equaliser.
With a vocal crowd in the grandstand as it continued to rain, the sides searched for the knockout punch - as youngster Josh Attard, refereeing his debut Premier Division grand final, kept the order (he handed out several yellow cards during the match).
It remained 1-1 at full-time: an as-advertised hard-fought, close affair.
After 30 minutes of extra time, the sides still could not be separated.
OVA won the penalty shootout 3-1 - with 40-year-old Adam Watson, in his last first-grade game, kicking the winning goal.
Oxley Vale Attunga coach Tim Coates - who returned to the helm this year after having two seasons off - said reclaiming the title was "nice".
He said OVA wanted to be the team that stopped Tamworth FC claiming a third-consecutive premiership.
"But they [FC] played really well," he said. "It was a really good game of football for bush football ... I thought it was a great game of football."
Coates coached the side to three-straight premierships from 2014, but it is the first time he has mentored OVA to an undefeated season.
"We haven't done that before, so it was really nice to do," he said.
In the earlier reserve-grade grand final, OVA beat North Companions 2-1.