The Lions, without the likes of skipper Brent Colbert (hamstring), Tim O’Keefe and Shane Schottner (unavailable), Jason Cole (shoulder) and Gerard Liddell (osteitis pubis), responded with the next six majors to score a famous victory.

The result left both sides on six wins for the year, along with rivals for the fifth and sixth ladder positions in Shepparton Swans and Mooroopna.

Seymour coach Shane Robertson said it was the proudest he had been of his players in his first season in charge since replacing Bernie Haberman, who was in attendance.

‘‘I gave them a huge spray on Thursday night about their attitude and where they were heading,’’ Robertson said.

‘‘It was before training and they came out and trained the house down and you saw the attitude today. It would have taken a really tough Rochy side to beat us today.

‘‘Even though we did a lot wrong in the last quarter to give them back the ball, the heart and soul that was there today was enormous.’’

Brendan Liddell set the tone in the midfield and the incomparable Saad Saad (seven goals) produced a typically incredible performance that he capped with a trademark sky-scraping mark in the final term.

Saad, who is more than halfway to another century of majors, played a lone hand in attack — Hugh Robertson was the only other Lion to kick at least two goals — but his usual forward partner-in-crime Paul Colbert delivered in a different position.

The Tigers went with a three-pronged tall forward line, with Grant Weeks, Luke Gestier and captain Elliot Bowen, that forced Robertson to play ruck option Brandyn Grenfell in defence.

That left teenager Will Brock, in his first year out of the under-18s and in just his fourth senior match, to carry the ruck load against Rochester duo Ryan Smith and Sam Brennan.

Brennan was good in his first game of the season, although he faded the longer the contest went.

Colbert’s introduction from up forward to the ruck was one of the match’s tipping points.

His kicking can still be shaky at times, but there is no denying his clean hands and ability to read the play.

Robbie Douglas was also hugely influential and Seymour’s backline, including Grenfell, Matt O’Keefe — who played despite being in serious doubt with a hamstring injury — Trent Fisher and Ash Walsh, was magnificent.

O’Keefe then Fisher shutdown Weeks, who managed just a final-term goal for the day.

Weeks’ frustration bubbled over in the second half, when he gave away two crucial 50m penalties.

Bowen (two) and Gestier (three) had their moments, but the latter let himself down with a number of poor disposals going forward when the contest was on the line.

Brady Green and James Brain were two of the few Tigers who impressed for four quarters.

White said his players could have just ‘‘stuffed’’ this year’s campaign.

‘‘I’m absolutely p***ed off. Our effort in the last quarter to work both ways of the footy was a disgrace,’’ White said.

‘‘We dominated the third quarter, but we missed six set shots at goal from marks. We could have had the game blown apart at three-quarter time.

‘‘We blew a game of footy. Our last quarter was the worst quarter I’ve been involved in for a long while.’’

Rochester pair Dillon Williams (broken nose) and Ash Watson (elbow), who struggled to break Adrian McCarthy’s tag for much of the afternoon, suffered injuries, but returned to the field.