After an incredibly challenging start to the year, the Harcourt community is celebrating after its senior footballers claimed premiership honours in the Maryborough Castlemaine District Football Netball League Grand Final at Princes Park, Maryborough on Saturday.
The club was proud to have both Senior and Under 12s football sides in the big one. While the valiant little Lions couldn’t get over the line, the Seniors gave locals something to cheer about after what started as an absolutely heartbreaking year for the town and wider community.
The club’s home base at the Harcourt Leisure Centre became a hub for club members and the wider community impacted in the wake of the January fires.
The Lion’s ‘Harcourt Pride’ sponsorship drive assisted members who had lost everything to hit the field in 2026, and also saw the club welcome a lot of new faces to the den as the community rallied around each other.
Harcourt came into the final off the back of a nail-biting three-point win over ladder-leaders Carisbrook. Rivals Talbot made their way into the match following a 31-point win over Newstead.
The Lions wasted absolutely no time getting the scoreboard ticking over in the first quarter, delighting the Harcourt faithful by slamming through seven goals to the Hawks’ 1.1 to hold an impressive 42-point lead at quarter-time.
A shell-shocked Talbot recovered in the second term kicking six goals and restraining the Lions to 1.4 to bridge the gap to 12 points at half-time.
Both sides struggled to make inroads in the third stanza with both defences locking down all avenues to goal. Harcourt managed just 1.1 and held Talbot to three points to maintain a 16-point buffer at three-quarter-time.
The Lions and Hawks threw everything into the final term with the flag on the line and managed just two goals apiece. But at the siren the Lions had clawed their way to a hard-fought 14-point victory.
Lions captain Thomas Walters claimed ‘Best on Ground’ medallion with a four-goal haul and Brayden Frost was awarded the AFL Victoria Medal.
Nathan Anderson also had his eye in, kicking three.
Other standouts in the winning side were Matthew McArthur, co-coach Cameron Anderson, Mark Noonan and Jack Threlfall.