It’s still only round 17 but the Shute Shield finals have come early for both Gordon and Eastern Suburbs.  Sitting in fifth and seventh respectively, the two sides are in a three way battle with Manly for the final two playoff spots. If Manly beat West Harbour this weekend ahead of a bye in round 18, the winner of Saturday’s clash will give their playoff hopes a huge boost.  It’s essentially a finals match come two weeks early and both side’s head into the blockbuster clash at Chatswood Oval coming off big local derby wins.  “Last week’s win over Norths was huge for the loyal Gordon supporters and players,” Stags coach Darren Coleman said.  “They’ve copped some terrible and fairly regular floggings at North Sydney Oval so I could see some real joy in the Highlander faithful and the team took a lot out of being able to deliver that.” Coleman, a former Easts coach, has taken Gordon a long way in 2019 after finishing last season with the wooden sp