Harcourt had to fight hard for three quarters, but did enough to defeat Lexton by 33 points at Lexton Reserve to deliver a blow to the Tigers’ chances of a top four finish.
Lexton will now need to defeat Dunolly in a winner-take-all battle for fourth spot next week, while the Lions, who will finish second, will be hoping to take the challenge right up to minor premier Natte Bealiba next week.
The first quarter was a goal-for-goal affair, with the Lions kicking three goals, yet the Tigers stayed in touch by kicking two, with Harcourt leading by eight points at the first change.
The game tightened up in the second term, with just a goal apiece between the two teams, however, it was Harcourt who were keeping Lexton at arms’ length, leading by nine points at the main break.
Lexton asked some questions of the Lions in the third term as they were hoping to make a big statement, but they could only manage one goal from five scoring shots, while Harcourt were able to kick two goals from six scoring shots. That allowed the Lions to extend their lead by the final term, leading by 15 points.
The Lions weathered everything the Tigers threw at them, and this allowed them to clear away in the final term as they kicked the only three goals of the contest to blow the margin out to five goals.
Mark Noonan was in the thick of everything for the Lions, and was named best-on-ground. Alex Code, Kaleb McBride, Cameron Anderson, Nathan Anderson and Jordan Gartside were also named in the best, while Jed Rodda kicked three goals.
Jack Peacock was Lexton’s best, while Alex McLean, William Brand, Jack Cuttler, Josh Sargent and Lochlan Pett were also named in the Tigers’ better players.