AFL

Lions eclipse Suns again to move to prelim

AFL / / 3 minutes of reading

It was billed as the biggest game in Queensland ever: reigning AFL premiers Brisbane against their state rivals from down the M1. The long-derided Gold Coast had finally arrived as a force, winning an elimination final in an ecstatic finish over Fremantle, via a last-gasp point to retiring club great David Swallow.

For a short time, the semi-final looked like it might live up to its billing. And then it fell apart. The Suns barely fired a shot after half-time, overpowered by a manic Lions side desperate to atone after being humiliated by Geelong in Melbourne last week. Brisbane now face Collingwood in a preliminary final at the MCG on Saturday. Gold Coast are done.

The Suns could hardly have started better. Ben King plucked a pack mark and kicked the first goal for a confidence boost after a poor first final. Matt Rowell tore through the next stoppage and his captain and best mate Noah Anderson streamed in on the run for another. Shortly after, Rowell burst through another pack and King had his next opportunity.

King matched up on Darcy Gardiner, a gamble on the part of Lions coach Chris Fagan as he tried to free up Harris Andrews in defence.… Read more..

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Roos reverse-Bradbury over Blues

AFL / / 4 minutes of reading

If you’ve had the acute misfortune of following the North Melbourne football club for the past decade, then Saturday’s victory over Carlton was a long time coming. True, the Kangaroos have beaten Richmond and West Coast in the past month, but those are the only teams below them on the ladder. They were overdue a proper scalp: a win to show their long-suffering supporters that the AFL’s longest rebuild was finally bearing fruit.

Nine weeks ago, on Good Friday, Carlton towelled up North to the tune of 82 points. Since then, though, the Roos have improved. They drew with the Brisbane Lions in Hobart. They were within three points of ladder leaders Collingwood in round 11 before being blown away in the last quarter. They’ve lost three other games by less than two goals. Against Fremantle last week, far from Arden Street, they looked like they weren’t quite convinced they deserved to win.

That lack of conviction remained evident against Carlton. In the end, the Kangaroos did what you might call a reverse Bradbury: after building an unassailable lead, they fell in a heap on the final turn for home, yet still had enough momentum to slip and slide over the line.… Read more..

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Robert Walls: 1950-2025

AFL / / 7 minutes of reading

They don’t make footballers like Robert Walls any more. Walls, who died on Thursday at the age of 74, was just 16 years and 275 days old when he made his VFL playing debut for Carlton against Hawthorn in round two of the 1967 season.

These days, players have to turn 18 in their draft year, giving them time to develop. Walls was thrown to the wolves, in a football era when serious violence was all too common. Pale, rangy and raw-boned, he looked like an awkward colt in a stampede.

But Walls was undaunted. “He was an incredibly brave player, and this probably bears a connection to his work as a commentator; he could go where angels feared to tread,” said veteran caller Tim Lane, who later worked alongside Walls at Ten and 3AW.

A fixture of the game for 50 years, Walls pretty much saw and did it all. At Carlton, he was a three-time premiership player (1968, 1970 and 1972), team of the century member and a premiership coach in 1987. In 2011, he was named an official legend of the club.

But his impact on the sport extended far beyond his beloved Blues. Walls had influential coaching tenures at Fitzroy (1981-85) and, especially, the Brisbane Bears (1991-95), where he nurtured the nucleus of what became the triple-premiership Brisbane Lions sides.… Read more..

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Lions eclipse Suns on big night for AFL QLD

AFL / / 4 minutes of reading

The Brisbane Lions took a retro theme into their match against the Gold Coast Suns at the Gabba on Sunday night. The team rolled out in the original Brisbane Bears strip from 1987. The cute and cuddly Carrara Koala roared at diehard fans from the LED scoreboard – an unsubtle reminder of the days when the club played its “home” games a full 80 kilometres down the M1. Other relics from the past (cheerleaders; Mike Brady’s original club song) would have been better left there. Warwick Capper was a no-show. Christopher Skase was unavailable.

See how far we’ve come? was the message to the home crowd. The purpose was to pay tribute to those who had done the hard yards to raise the profile of the indigenous code north of the Tweed River. Nearly 40 years later, fresh off their fourth premiership, the Lions still battle for respect from parts of the Victorian media who mourn the development of the national competition. As for the Gold Coast Suns – based at the Bears’ old Carrara home – they’re still battling, full stop, after 14 years in the AFL without a finals appearance.

In the short history between these two clubs, the 28th “QClash” (other informal names: the Sunshine Stoush, Pineapple Grapple, Banana Bash, etc) carried more weight than most.… Read more..

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AFL grand final 2023: the advantage call that wasn’t

AFL / / 4 minutes of reading

In a game of centimetres and seconds, and less than a kick in it, it mattered: With one minute and 18 seconds to go, Lachie Neale was legged by Oleg Markov. And then the whistle blew.

No one heard it. Zac Bailey, who’d kicked two incredible early goals, grabbed the ball and hoicked it forward.

The umpire called advantage, but there was none, and Bailey’s ball landed harmlessly. The game played on.

Half an hour later, in the Brisbane Lions’ rooms, children ran amok – playing kick-to-kick across the room, heedless of the adults in various states of mourning around them.

Lachie Neale embraced his wife, Jules. He was quiet, but his body shook with sobs. To his own surprise more than most, he’d won his second Brownlow Medal early in the week.

He’d played in one grand final before – as substitute, for Fremantle in 2013 – but the biggest prize still eluded him.

By the far wall, his co-captain, Harris Andrews, lay on the floor, staring at the ceiling. When he had composed himself, he stood taller than ever after a superb season – his back straight and chin up.

“It was a fantastic game. I thought the boys really rallied hard,” Andrews said.

… Read more..

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AFL grand final 2023: burning questions

AFL / / 4 minutes of reading

Collingwood held top spot on the ladder for almost the entire season, finishing minor premiers, while the Brisbane Lions steadily closed the gap to eventually finish runners-up. On Saturday, natural justice has been served, with the two teams playing off in the big dance for the biggest prize.

The Lions have had the easier passage into the grand final, while the Magpies have ground out narrow wins against Melbourne and GWS. Can Collingwood hang on, or will the Lions finally run over the top of them?

Last time they played

Round 23: Brisbane Lions 19.10 (124) d Collingwood 15.10 (100) at Marvel Stadium.

Will Collingwood bottle the game up?

This Collingwood team forged its reputation in late 2022 and most of 2023 playing football that could induce whiplash, based on lightning rebound from half-back. Lately, though – as the competition has caught up, and with Nick Daicos out for six weeks – they’ve looked more like the Sydney Swans under Paul Roos, grinding out close wins with highly contested play.

The Lions, conversely, are used to playing fast and loose football on fast tracks, and Saturday will be hot and dry. Heat won’t bother the Brisbane Lions, but will the Magpies force them into a war of attrition?… Read more..

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