Three Seymour sides will be contesting Goulburn Valley League grand finals this Sunday at Deakin Reserve in Shepparton, having all won their respective preliminary finals on a super Sunday for the club at the weekend.

Both the B-grade and B-reserve netball sides will vie for glory on the court, while the reserves football side will take to the grass in its quest for a flag.

B-grade netball

Having finished on top of the ladder and dropping just two games all season, Seymour looked to be the heavy favourite heading into the B-grade finals series.

But a one-goal heartbreak in the qualifying final to second-placed Euroa a fortnight ago meant the Lions were forced to do things the long way, progressing to the preliminary final after comfortably accounting for Shepparton Swans in the first semi-final last week.

However, a stunning upset in the second semi-final saw Echuca directly qualify for the decider, meaning the Lions had to face off against Euroa once again at the weekend for a spot in the decider. Only this time, there were no second chances.

The top-two preliminary final clash was a tense and tight affair from the opening possession, as was to be expected, with the scorers kept busy as the two sides exchanged the lead three times in the opening term, although Euroa emerged with it as Seymour trailed 11-12 at quarter-time.

While Seymour opened the scoring to tie the game up in the second term, it was Euroa that got the jump, racing out to a four-goal lead. While the Lions rode the ebbs and flows to tie the game up again at 18-18, the Magpies enjoyed a five-minute burst that yielded seven of the final nine goals of the half, entering the main break with a game-high 25-20 lead.

Seymour needed to find a response in the third term. While it was steady going early, Ashlyn Webster made the most of a momentum swing to nail five unanswered goals, wiping out the entire deficit and once again drawing the Lions level. However, Euroa managed to eke out a one-goal advantage at the final change, Seymour trailing 34-35 with a quarter to play.

The lead soon became three as Euroa got off to a hot start in the final term. While the Lions drew level, they couldn’t find the lead, as the Magpies once again pulled away to lead 40-37.

Seymour toiled hard and cut the lead to one, but Euroa had the answers, extending it back to three as time wound down, before Webster came up clutch again, firing home four straight scores to give the Lions the lead with the final goal of the game, booking Seymour’s grand final spot in exhilarating circumstances.

The Lions will face Echuca at 1pm on Sunday at Deakin Reserve, with the only meeting this season between the pair going the way of Seymour by 16 goals.

B-reserve netball

The B-reserve Lions have also booked their spot in the decider following a preliminary final win over Rochester, although in much more straight-forward fashion than their B-grade clubmates.

A second semi-final loss to Euroa meant Seymour had to overcome Rochester at the weekend in the preliminary final to feature in the big dance — and that is exactly what it did, claiming a comfortable 38-24 victory.

Despite trailing 8-11 at the first break, some sharp shooting from Shona Gesler, Chloe Locke and Mia Allen meant the Lions were back on top by half-time, enjoying a slim 19-17 advantage at the main break.

It was extended to six by three-quarter time as the Lions continued to grow into the contest and in a brilliant final term, Seymour restricted the Tigers to just three goals while piling on nine of its own to claim the eventual 14-goal victory, joining the B-grade squad on the final day of the season.

The Lions will be out for revenge, too, as they are set to face Euroa on Sunday for a shot at premiership glory, the Magpies securing a nine-goal victory the last time they faced each other a fortnight ago.

Reserves football

Seymour’s reserves football side has secured a grand final date with Kyabram on Sunday, having grinded out a preliminary final win over Mansfield in a low-scoring affair at Deakin Reserve at the weekend.

Having gone down to the Bombers in the second semi-final last week, the Lions made the most of the second chance, overcoming a slow start to clinch a 6.5 (41) to 4.4 (28) victory over the Eagles and punching their ticket to the big dance.

Blustery conditions made scoring difficult in the opening term on Sunday and, despite not registering any score at all, Seymour trailed by only two points at quarter-time as the Eagles also failed to kick a major of their own.

The lead was cut to one point by half-time as the arm wrestle continued in the second term, with Jack Davey and Will Le Deux responding to Mansfield majors with goals for the Lions, who went into the sheds at the main break trailing 13-14.

The Eagles extended the lead to seven points with the first goal of the second half, but back-to-back Seymour majors via Curtis Powell and league leading goalkicker Jack Radford saw the Lions hit the front for the first time all afternoon. It was a lead they would not relinquish.

In booting the first two goals of the final quarter, Seymour opened up a game-high 19-point lead and while Mansfield found a late reply, it got no closer than 13 points as the Lions roared into the grand final.

Seymour and Kyabram will do battle in the decider on Sunday at 11.55am, with the Lions looking to overturn the 15-point defeat they experienced at the hands of the Bombers last week.

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Tuesday, 6th December 2022

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