After a feisty opening, the Lions were outmuscled by the rampant Vultures - 26.14 (170) to 6.7 (43).
It was Mt Gravatt’s fifth successive victory and they are poised to mount a serious challenge for a Grand Final berth from the elimination final, just as they did last season.
The Vultures cannot finish any higher than fourth but are playing as well as any side in the competition.
They had to contend with a spirited opening by the Lions, with the visitors booting three of the first four goals of the game.
Bryce Retzlaff was brilliant at centre-half-forward in the opening term, running hard to provide a marking target up the ground, and streaming forward often enough to also produce two goals.
Claye Beams was also a livewire in the midfield and used his body cleverly to nail two goals himself and put the Lions within seven points at quarter-time.
Mt Gravatt’s big bodied defence took control in the second term, with the Lions pushing numbers around the ball but having difficulty penetrating their half-forward line.
Former Lions rookie Tom Tarrant and athletic ruckman/key position player Joel Smouha were impassable through the middle stages of the game, while wily veteran Darryl White showed his full bag of tricks in setting up a number of goals at half-forward.
Tom Collier worked overtime in defence throughout the day and battled gamely against overwhelming odds, while Troy Selwood competed hard and constantly put his body on the line for the Lions.
Nonetheless, Mt Gravatt kicked 8.4 to 0.2 in the second quarter and it took a smart piece of play and strong mark by Broc McCauley to break a 45-minute goal drought for the Lions in the third term.
The young bodies of the Lions struggled to match their more experienced counterparts as the game wore on, although top up players Jesse Wallin and Jack James earned praise from the Lions coaching staff.
The Lions went into the game without experienced senior AFL player Justin Sherman and Travis Johnstone from their named line-up, leaving them with 13 listed and 10 top-up players.
They also desperately missed Aaron Cornelius, who has starred at QAFL level and was rightly given another chance in the seniors last night.
The Lions meet Aspley - who swapped places with them in eighth and ninth place on the premiership table this weekend - in the penultimate game of the season at Giffin Park next Saturday.
In other games, Labrador maintained their one-game lead at the top of the premiership table with a 57-point win over Redland, Southport stayed within striking distance with a 104-point demolition of the Western Magpies, Morningside held third by easily accounting for Broadbeach by 69 points, and Aspley produced the upset of the round by demolishing the shaky NT Thunder by 68 points
SCOREBOARD
Mt Gravatt 5.4 13.8 19.11 26.14 (170)
Brisbane Lions 4.3 4.5 6.7 6.7 (43)
GOALS - Vultures: W. Cleary 4, T. Spencer 3, A. Evans 3, D. Steven 2, N. Gilliland 2, J. Vearing 2, D. Page 2, M. Schultz 2, A. Pratt , M. Hamill , R. Thomson , D. Savage , D. White , A. Tarrant. Lions: B. Retzlaff 2, C. Beams 2, T. Higgins , B. McCauley.
BEST - Vultures: A. Tarrant, N. Reid, D. White, T. Spencer, M. Schultz, J. Furfaro. Lions: T. Collier, T. Selwood, C. Beams, J. Wallin, J. James, A. Buchanan.
