The Redleg had a strange dream on Saturday night. In it, the Premiership Cup came towards him. But never close enough to touch.

The Redleg wanted to speak but, in his stunned state, no words came out. The Cup was upset. It had seen the OMs lose another close one, this time to Old Camberwell by seven points.

Previous pleas by coach Carty for a lift from the boys had fallen on deaf ears. The premiership cup delivered its message in song, belting out the chorus of a Crowded House classic.

Hey now, hey now
Don’t dream it’s over
Hey now, hey now
When the world comes in
They come, they come
To build a wall between us
We know they won’t win

"But we’re three games out of the four now," The Redleg replied. "And there’s only five rounds left. It’s going to be hard."

The cup would not have a bar of it. Out was Crowded House and in were Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush.

Don’t give up now
we’re proud of who you are
Don’t give up
you know it’s never been easy
Don’t give up
’cause I believe there’s a place
there’s a place where we belong

And with that, the cup disappeared. Back into its hiding place at VAFA headquarters.

"Come back cup, come back," the Redleg pleaded. "Don’t go."

But to no avail.

The laws of probability suggest that the season is over for the OMs. But they are still a mathematical chance of making the four.

Needless to say, Saturday’s loss did not help. Yet again, the OMs came up short in a thriller due to inaccurate kicking. It was the fifth time the side has lost by seven points or less this season.

"I don’t know why it keeps happening to us," skipper Dean Osmond confided to the Pope as he landed in Sydney. "What have we done wrong?"

Andy Ray bagged three goals in a superb effort in the midfield. He had no answer to Dean’s question either.

"I’m stunned. I wished I hadn’t given that black cat a home," Ranga said to Stinga.

Saturday’s game was an odd one. The OMs kicked 4.6 into a strong breeze but could only manage 3.9 with the wind at its back.

The midfield tried hard but ran out of legs. Pete Kennon again thrust his name before selectors with another top performance. And wasn’t it good to see comeback kid Sam Playfair hit some form!

But the day was soured even further when inspirational full-back Chris Jenkins’ calf exploded in the third quarter.

"It was like the Coco Pops ad. Snap, crackle then pop!" Jenks said to Jimmy the trainer. "That’s ruined my chances of reaching my 500th this year."

Thanks to Rocket for goal umpiring - we reckon Jozza does a better job - and James Ray for boundary umpiring.

OLD CAMBERWELL 0.2 4.4 7.6 9.10-64
OLD MELBURNIANS 2.6 3.9 4.12 7.15-57
Goal Kickers: A. Ray 3, P. Kennon 2, D. Osmond, S. Parsons
Best Players: D. Osmond, S. Parsons, P. Kennon, S. Playfair, S. McNally, C. Jenkins