MITTA emerged as the Tallangatta League frontrunners after edging out Barnawartha on Saturday.
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The Mountain Men rose above the heavy conditions to pull ahead of the Tigers in the final quarter.
Alex Beggs and Mitta playing coach Simon Hillier kicked two goals each in the 12-point win.
The Tigers had the run of the play early in the third quarter and looked to be in a position to kick on after the last change, but Mitta had other ideas.
The final quarter was an arm wrestle, but Mitta made the most of their chances, kicking 3.2 to the Tigers’ three behinds to bank a rugged victory.
Hillier said the final quarter performance was a positive for his side.
“We knew it was going to be a tough one being a top of the table clash,” he said.
“We threw everything at it.
“The first three quarters didn't go how we wanted, but we really persevered and got a really good result in the end.”
The Mountain Men led at half-time, but the Tigers made things interesting in the third quarter.
We knew it was going to be tough being a top of the table clash, we threw everything at it.
- Simon Hillier
They should have been in front by more at the last change, but wayward goalkicking prevented them from building a margin they could defend.
They kicked 3.5 for the quarter and held Mitta goalless, but the Mountain Men returned the favour in the final quarter.
Hillier and Craig Lieshke were among Mitta's best for the afternoon, while the likes of Jye Hodgkin and Nathan Thompson rose to the occasion when required as well.
It was a missed opportunity for the Tigers, who tried a number of different forward line combinations in a bid to break the game open.
Adam Elias converted from a strong pack mark in the third quarter and looked dangerous when working in tandem with Jordan Wolff, but the Tigers lacked multiple goalkickers.
Wolff kicked one but was well held by Josh Lieshke in difficult conditions for big forwards.
A number of muddy patches on the playing surface made clean ball use difficult on the clubhouse wing, but both sides defied the conditions to exhibit some impressive disposal.
In the weekend's other matches, Tallangatta coughed up a four-goal quarter time lead against Kiewa-Sandy Creek to crash to a third straight loss.
Rutherglen thumped Chiltern by 108 points thanks to a seven goal haul from Bobby Griffiths.
Six goals to Jayden Kotzur helped Thurgoona to a 63-point win over Beechworth, while Wahgunyah were far too good for Yackandandah, posting an 86-point win.
