With Cairns Tigers forward Louis Campbell-Kossack lining up from 25m out on a 55 degree angle to tie the game with seconds to play, Crocs fans in the grandstand were seriously wondering: “Have we really let this one slip?”.

The relief was palpable as Campbell-Kossack launched and missed - the second gettable Tigers’ let-off in the final two minutes - and then the siren immediately went.

Port Douglas had miraculously held on for a five-point win against a fast-finishing Tigers outfit.

After leading the whole game, the Crocs deserved the win, but the Tigers refused to give up, and came scarily close to snatching a draw in the dying seconds, with the final score 12.4 (76) to 10.11 (71).

Port Douglas coach Nick Salter looked suitably relieved after the final siren sounded.

“Didn’t really want it to be that close,” Salter said.

“But the boys stuck to the task.”

“I’m just happy for them,” he said.

“It was a good game of footy.

“They’re a good side, we’ll see them again, no doubt.”

Kicking with a strong breeze in the first quarter, it felt like the Crocs’ 23-point lead at quarter time may not have been quite enough.

But they dug in during the second quarter, thanks to some determined defence, to lead by 20 points at the main break.

With the wind in the third, Port Douglas was meant to have an unassailable lead by three-quarter time, but actually lost that quarter by a point.

And the Tigers capitalised in the final term, piling on the pressure, but were eventually unable to land the killer blow.

Best players for the Crocs were Ben Mcphee, Thomas Cantwell, Zayne Moore, Kye Chapple, Murphy Short and Sam Fairclough, while the ever-reliable Chapple kicked six goals.

The Crocs women went down to the Tigers by 35 points, 0.2 (2) to 5.7 (37).

Best players were Jaimi Byrne, Luca Roulstone, Indianna Paull, Caity Walsh, Michelle Waldron and Sophie Jeffrey.

This Saturday, Port Douglas takes on the Bulldogs away.

US triathletes Matthew Marquardt and Jackie Hering won the Ironman Cairns event on Sunday.

Ohio athlete Marquardt, 27, completed the course in seven hours and 50 minutes, while Wisconsin’s Hering, 40, finished in eight hours and 42 minutes.

More than 2800 athletes from 62 countries competed during the weekend, including 35 men and 18 women in the professional fields.

The Ironkids event on Saturday attracted about 500 children who took on a mini course.

The oldest male competitor during the weekend action was 92 years old, while the oldest female was 77.