Graham's a miracle worker

WHEN there's life, there's hope. And when there's Graham Ross, miracles can happen.

The resurgent Queensland Lions continued their thrilling charge towards the finals after upsetting second-placed Ipswich Knights 3-2 in the penultimate round of the Premier Division 1 season.

With just one week of the Premier Division 1 regular season remaining, the Lions can seal a finals spot should Rocklea lose or draw with Toowoomba and the Lions overcome Slacks Creek on Saturday night.

If this scenario pans out, Lions coach Graham Ross will be hailed a miracle worker at Richlands Luxury Paints Stadium.

Since his appointment as coach following Walter Oldenburg's decision to leave the club after their round 13 loss to Slacks Creek, the Lions have risen from the dead.

Saturday's victory over the Knights at Eric Evans Oval was the Lions fourth win in their past six encounters and eclipses their effort under Oldenburg's reign during the first 13 rounds.

Jorge Aguirre grabbed himself a double, but it was Shoheel Khan's 72nd-minute strike that separated the two teams at full-time.

While the region's other two teams, Brisbane Force and Western Spirit may have already clinched final berths, there are still plenty of reasons for both teams to perform strongly in their final round matches.

The Spirit can cap their excellent return season to Division 1 by winning the title and gaining automatic promotion to the Premier League if they beat the Knights this Sunday and a string of results from other games fall their way.

While the Force can finish fourth if they take care of North Star this Saturday and the Spirit do the job on the Knights.