Seymour coach Elle Nexhip was named the Lions’ best in the loss to Mooroopna at the weekend. Photos: Wayne Herring.
Seymour’s 2026 Goulburn Valley league A-grade campaign has come to an end at the hands of Mooroopna at the weekend, with the Lions unable to overcome the second-placed Cats in their semi-final at Kings Park on Saturday.
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On a day that saw wet and wild weather wreak havoc, the Lions were hoping to cause some chaos of their own with a big upset victory over a Mooroopna outfit that has looked a premiership chance from the opening round of the season.
And while the Lions rallied to take the fight up to the Cats early, they were ultimately unable to sustain the required intensity for the full four quarters, going down 35-53 at the final whistle to bring their season to a close.
It was Seymour that got the jump in the first term to take the first lead of the match at 3-0, which was immediately wiped out, then reinstated at 6-3, as both sides took a little while to settle into the rhythm of the cut-throat contest.
The Cats quickly flexed their considerable muscle, though, giving the Lions a taste of their offensive firepower with a 5-0 run to open up a six-goal advantage, although Seymour managed to close the deficit to four by the first break, trailing 9-13.
Ruby Martin cops some close attention from her Mooroopna opponent.
The opening few minutes of the second term saw the Lions sink five of the first six goals, however, quickly levelling the scores at 14 apiece, and looked every bit the challenger as the Cats struggled to contain the quick ball movement Seymour was producing in front of its home crowd.
Seymour would rally again to close the gap back to one after Mooroopna forged four goals ahead, staying in touch at 18-19 behind, but the Cats continued to threaten, and when they put the foot down once again in the dying stages of the first half, there would be no recovering.
Conceding 11 of the final 13 goals of the second term, the Lions watched a one-goal margin balloon out to 10 in the blink of an eye, as they headed into the half-time break down 20-30, and the devastation didn’t end there.
A 15-6 third term the way of the Cats meant Seymour trailed 26-45 by the final change as they struggled to find answers to the overwhelming nature of Mooroopna’s offensive prowess and suffocating defence, with the game all but over with a quarter to play.
The Lions didn’t drop their heads, however, winning the final term 9-8 to at least finish on a somewhat positive note, though there would be no escaping the eventual 18-goal defeat.
Coach Elle Nexhip was named Seymour’s best in the loss, once again proving instrumental through the midcourt, while at either end, both Ally Black and Bridie Cantwell were brilliant, having plenty of influence on what was in the end a tough contest for the Lions.
The loss marks the end of the road for the A-grade side, however there is still a solid chance of the Lions claiming silverware on court in 2026, with both the B-grade and reigning premier B-reserve sides in the hunt, with both outfits to line up in preliminary finals at Deakin Reserve this Sunday in the hopes of punching their respective grand final tickets.
