Game On column
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It’s only when you come to reflect on the year in sport when you realise just how wild it was.
Two ultimately failed A-League expansion bids, a Dragons campaign which was staggeringly unpredictable even by their standards, a couple of broken hoodoos and some powerhouse clubs re-emerging.
Game On counts down the top 10 Illawarra teams of 2018.
10 Lake Illawarra
The Lakers juggernaut was unstoppable last season, winning the Twenty20, one-day and two-day treble and has continued this season, leading South Coast competition at the Christmas break
9 Kiama Power
Coach Rod Richards and captain Alex Perger broke career premiership droughts as Kiama turned the tables on arch-rivals Wollongong Lions to claim the South Coast flag by 13 points.
8 Albion Park Cows
It will be remembered as one of the greatest winning streaks in Illawarra sporting history. A 59 game unbeaten run over three years to win the Illawarra premiership and grand finals. It only ended in September with a 2-1 loss in the Champion of Champions final to Dunbar.
7 Dragons
St George Illawarra’s season had collapsed when they produced a breathtaking 48-18 finals win over Brisbane.
It took three Adam Reynolds field goals for Souths to knock them out the following week.
6 Wests Devils
They led 18-nil and then tackled themselves to a standstill as Thirroul made a comeback, but in a nerve-shredding decider, Wests held on to win the Illawarra title 18-16.
5 Shellharbour Sharks
The 17-year drought and the journey to the now NSW Premiership and Illawarra competitions and back to Group Seven was complete, as Shellharbour dominated the grand final against Kiama.
4 Bowral
The Highlands club was on the brink of collapse earlier this decade, but delivered a stunning 34-18 victory over Avondale, their first Illawarra rugby premiership since 1999.
3 Dragons women
St George Illawarra only won one game in the inaugural season, but their presence in the four-team league was a watershed moment for women’s rugby league.
2 Southern Expansion
A team that will never exist in the top 10? That’s just the kind of year it was. The seemingly endless and bitter A-League expansion battle between super bid Southern Expansion and Wollongong Wolves resulted in the region missing out completely.
1 Bulli
When Wollongong United equalised in the 88th minute, the grand final curse seemed all too real. But Guy Knight’s header in injury time would end 32 years of heartache and reward Bulli’s recent dominance.
