In a contest where momentum swung repeatedly across the afternoon, the Magpies made the perfect start before withstanding a fierce Cats comeback to secure an important 9.9 (63) to 8.11 (59) victory at Euroa Memorial Oval.
The hosts burst out of the blocks in the opening quarter, piling on five goals to one in a dominant first-term display, with Nate Trotter igniting the home crowd with an early major.
From there Mitchell Walters, Will Creevey and Jacob Gleeson capitalised, hitting the scoreboard as Euroa repeatedly punished Mooroopna on turnover.
Jett Trotter added another strike late in the term as the Magpies surged to a 13-point quarter-time lead to gain the ascendancy.
However, the Cats responded strongly in the second quarter to plant a seed of doubt in Euroa minds.
Reeve Evans, William Emanuelli and Alex Macrae hit the scoreboard to enable Mooroopna to work its way back into the contest, as the visitor’s pressure began to restrict Euroa’s ball movement.
Despite the Cats’ resurgence, Euroa managed to maintain a narrow advantage at half-time thanks to Lachlan Hill’s important goal midway through the quarter.
What followed after the main break was a brutal war of attrition as both sides produced dogged displays in the hunt for all four points.
Effectively cancelling each other out, both sides struggled to carve out clear-cut scoring opportunities in a fiercely-contested third quarter that yielded eight combined behinds and no goals.
With pressure intensifying around stoppages and both defences standing tall, Euroa carried a slender seven-point lead into the final term – as Mooroopna threatened to steal the spoils early in the fourth quarter.
Kai Madgwick and Dan Tuddenham kicked crucial goals for the Cats as the margin narrowed to six points midway through the final term, placing the home side under immense pressure.
Still, the hosts eventually gained an unassailable foothold when Nate Trotter stepped up with his third goa at the 14-minute mark, providing the breathing room the Magpies desperately needed before a series of late Mooroopna behinds left the visitor agonisingly short.
Trotter was outstanding up forward for Euroa with three goals, while Mitchell Walters added two in an influential display as Hill, Creevey, Jacob Gleeson and Jett Trotter also hit the scoreboard for the winner.
For Mooroopna, Emanuelli and Madgwick each kicked two goals, while Tuddenham, Evans, Macrae and Will Wood contributed one apiece.
Speaking after the game, Cats coach John Lamont gave a balanced assessment of how he felt his troops fared after a hard-fought battle on the road.
“We made some crucial blunders in the game and next minute it’s five goals to one,” he said.
“You’re chasing catch-up then – thankfully we got the last two of the first quarter to be pretty competitive from there.
“I was pleased with the character they showed to come back and hit the front at one stage there.
“We were a bit inaccurate second half and that does prove costly – kicking 2.8 – there was a lot of things over the course where we didn’t take enough of the chances we created.
“We made some mistakes at crucial times, but all credit to Euroa, they started well and played with confidence and they’ve prevailed in the end.”
Commenting on the fourth quarter showing, Lamont was impressed with the character demonstrated by his players as they nearly overturned Euroa’s lead.
“I told them that ‘sport builds character and it also reveals character’,” he said of his message in the dressing room afterwards.
“I also spoke about sport sometimes being cruel – we really needed the win and we’d done enough to win it, so the players were left dejected, but that’s the nature of it, so we’re staying positive.”
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