Travelling to Mooroopna Recreation Reserve on Saturday to take on the Cats, who have been in formidable form to start the season, the Lions were up against it from the opening centre pass and were never able to recover, slowly losing ground at every break before eventually falling 33-46 at the final whistle.
Mooroopna, which had suffered a single loss heading into the clash, always looked a daunting task on paper for the Lions, especially away, with the Cats boasting four wins from as many games at Mooroopna Recreation Reserve this year, with an average winning margin of 15 goals, prior to facing Seymour.
From the jump, Mooroopna looked the more dangerous side. While the Lions opened the scoring for the contest, the Cats immediately fired back with the next five goals to open a four-goal gap.
The Lions were able to gain some standing on court and go toe-to-toe for a little while, but Mooroopna continued to maintain the lead, at one stage going ahead by six, but Seymour managed to close it down by a goal to go into the first break down 6-11.
Replicating the opening term, Seymour put the first goal on the board in the second, but the Cats fired home the next four to open up a game-high eight-goal advantage at 15-7.
Just when the Lions looked to be in trouble, though, they rallied, showing plenty of fight to go on a four-goal run, their best of the game, to close the gap down to 14-18, eventually going into the main break down 15-20 and looking up for a second-half scrap.
With all the momentum heading into the break, the Lions looked determined to do something with it, scoring four of the first five goals in the third term to close within two goals at 19-21 and were looking menacing.
But the Cats responded when challenged, pouring in seven of the next eight to reinstate an eight-goal gap, killing off any Seymour hopes of a comeback victory from there.
Going into the final change down 24-31, the Lions needed a spark in the final term, and while they started strongly to keep the margin fluctuating between five and seven goals, the home side went on a run late in the term, scoring eight of the nine goals registered in a five-minute period to blow the lead out to the eventual 13-goal winning margin.
Lucy Zotti was named the Lions’ best in the win, providing plenty of grunt in the midcourt, and was well-supported by coach Elle Nexhip, who was also influential, as was Ally Black, who proved a tough match-up for the Cats’ defence under the ring.
The defeat, which comes after Seymour went down to Echuca before the bye, means the Lions end round eight in seventh spot on the ladder with a 4-4 record, locked in a three-team battle for fifth, sixth and seventh, and with a significant percentage deficit to every team currently above them.
The Lions will be hoping a return to Kings Park this weekend to host Rochester will help turn their fortunes around.
