The Grasshoppers will take on a desperate Lexton outfit in Saturday’s Round 14 Maryborough Castlemaine District Football Netball League clash.
The sides are separated by seven wins, with the upcoming match meaning vastly different things for the two teams.
The Tigers sit just one game outside the top eight with three rounds remaining and will have to win at least two of their last three to have any chance of playing finals.
Navarre assistant coach Matt Newton said his side will be ready for a fired up opposition.
“Our rivalry with Lexton goes back a long time. It is usually a pretty fiery and physical affair when we play them,” he said.
“We know they will be hungry to keep their season alive, but we are confident in our abilities to be able to come away with a win.”
A loss for the Tigers could see them miss out on a finals berth for the first time since 2011 when they joined the MCDFNL.
For the Grasshoppers, this week will serve as a warm up for their round 15 top of the table clash against Carisbrook, which will decide first and second place.
“We don’t want to take Lexton lightly, we will worry about Carisbrook after this game,” Newton said.
Lexton hosted Navarre back in round four of this season, with the Grasshoppers easily accounting for the home side by 96 points.
Newton said he believes Lexton will be better this time around.
“They were missing some key contributors in that game. They will be better than that this week,” he said.
Cody Driscoll proved difficult for the Tigers that day, booting six of Navarre’s 17 goals.
Driscoll has booted 70 goals from 13 games this season, and needs only 13 more to better his tally of 82 last year.
He is 10 goals clear of Carisbrook’s Luke Treacy in the league’s goal kicking standings.
Navarre will continue to welcome back its cast of experienced players this weekend, with more changes set to be made.
“There might be a couple of players back,” Newton said.
“Daniel Parkin won’t be too far away and Jesse Hannett and Billy Parry should be back soon too.”
