Entering Saturday’s clash at Kings Park on a five-game unbeaten streak and having scored more than 70 goals in each of the past three outings, the Lions were arguably the most in-form team in the competition.
But coming up against a plucky Eagles side fighting for a spot inside the top six, Seymour was unable to extend the winning streak to six, going down 39-50 to taste its first defeat since before the mid-season bye.
Missing the likes of Ally Black and Sarah Thorpe, the Lions were without their usual line-up on Saturday, although it didn’t seem to affect them early, with a flurry of Mansfield goals in the final stages of the first term all that separated the sides at quarter-time, as Seymour trailed 8-12 but was right in the contest.
So it proved in the second, with the Lions scoring five of the first seven goals to pull back to 13-14, and while they matched Mansfield for most of the rest of the term, they were unable to poke their noses in front at any stage, with the margin hovering around the one to three-goal mark before the half-time whistle eventually sounded, leaving Seymour down 19-22 at the main break.
Coach Elle Nexhip swung the changes at the break, with the height of Ruby Martin and Toni Bootland sent into the defensive circle to disrupt the Eagles attack. And it looked to have worked initially, with the Lions closing the gap to draw level at 23-apiece early in the third term.
It was an arm wrestle from there, as Mansfield again jumped out to a three-goal lead, before Seymour fought back. However, the final four goals of the third term the way of the visitors pushed the margin out to seven at the final break, and a 28-35 deficit seemed a big hill for the Lions to climb in the last.
While Seymour put in a dogged display, seven of the first nine goals the way of Mansfield in the final term broke the contest wide open, with the lead reaching a peak of 14 goals midway through the quarter as the Eagles put the game to bed.
Strong shooting from Ashlyn Webster and Shona Gesler, both of whom stepped up from B-grade, in the final few minutes helped close the deficit back down to 11, however it couldn’t stop the Lions from enduring a fifth defeat of the season.
Lucy Zotti was named Seymour’s best in the loss, battling hard at wing defence all afternoon, while Martin and Nexhip were also influential.
While the loss doesn’t have an immediate bearing on Seymour’s ladder position, with the Lions still sitting two games and percentage clear of fifth-placed Tatura despite the loss, it does make for a nervy final month leading into September.
The Lions face top-two sides Euroa and Echuca over the next fortnight, before a date with finals aspirant Shepparton United in the penultimate round and a blockbuster clash against Tatura in the final game of the home-and-away season, one which could have huge implications on the make-up of the top six.
