Newcastle City survived a thriller and Terrigal Avoca may lose their ruckman as the clubs set for a sixth grand final meeting in the space of eight Black Diamond Cup seasons.
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Three second-half majors from Jack Woodhams helped City (8.11-59) edge out Singleton (8.6-54) by less than a goal at Pasterfield Sports Complex while Mitchell Price (knee) went down injured as the Panthers (15.13-103) easily accounted for hosts Killarney Vale (4.5-29).
It will be the third straight year they go head-to-head in a title showdown and repeats previous encounters from 2013, 2015 and 2016.
The Panthers are the defending champions, recently claimed a fourth consecutive minor premiership and have now extended their winning streak to 30 games in a row.
"They [Terrigal Avoca] haven't been beaten in almost two years and we haven't beaten them since grand final day in 2018," City coach Tim Cotter said. "They are the favourites, but we have given ourselves a chance."
City had a tight tussle with Singleton, down by eight at the end of the first term and all square going into the last.
"The first quarter we only had five points and we had four set shots. I thought at the time it might come back to bite us and it almost did," Cotter said.
Wodhams ended up with four, including back-to-back efforts for an 18-point advantage midway through the fourth quarter. Singleton struck twice late to get within range and Roosters captain-coach Jed Ellis-Cluff said he was "proud" of his squad's efforts in 2020.
Terrigal Avoca have Price in doubt but captain Kurt Fleming is set to return.
In the women's Black Diamond Cup it will be undefeated minor premiers Killarney Vale up against three-time reigning champions City in the 2020 grand final.
Elimination semis on Saturday saw Killarney Vale (7.8-50) beat Wyong Lakes (1.0-6) and City (14.8-92) trounce Cardiff (1.3-9).
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Josh Callinan
My name is Josh Callinan and I'm a sports journalist at the Newcastle Herald. I started with the newspaper in 2016 after a decade at the Maitland Mercury.
My name is Josh Callinan and I'm a sports journalist at the Newcastle Herald. I started with the newspaper in 2016 after a decade at the Maitland Mercury.
