THE Brisbane Lions staged an incredible last-quarter turnaround to finish over the top of a tiring Collingwood last night, scraping home in the final minutes to win by two points in heavy conditions at the Gabba.
Jed Adcock was the hero for the home side, putting the Lions in front at the 26th minute after late goals from Anthony Corrie and Jonathan Brown, both scored from free kicks awarded in front of goal, had dragged the Lions back into the contest. Paul Medhurst lost one last chance to snatch back the lead for the Magpies, with the Lions then locking up the game.
After a late wet-season downpour earlier in the afternoon, this was a match for old-fashioned football purists: tough, physical and full of the kind of mistakes that fans are happy to forgive, as long as the players have their head over the football.
After two goals inside the first two minutes — Daniel Bradshaw snaring his first after trapping the ball close to the boundary, followed immediately by Leon Davis at the other end — the game quickly settled into a muddy slugfest.
And yet, in conditions not made for key forwards, that was where most early interest lay. With Matthew Pavlich's scalp still warm in his back pocket, second-gamer Nathan Brown went straight to his opposite number and namesake, Jonathan.
Again, the young full-back acquitted himself admirably — with help from Nick Maxwell, Harry O'Brien and whoever else was courageous or silly enough to get in the big man's way.
Early on, however, Jonathan Brown had enough support to ensure the Lions were not the one-man band they have recently been painted as. Bradshaw had three goals by half-time, ruckman Jamie Charman had drifted forward for another two and first-gamer Lachie Henderson was a handy decoy.
The biggest surprise was Jared Brennan. The Lions' biggest enigma is not known for his work in close, but in the second quarter he was thrown into the midfield to telling effect, winning several hardballs of his own to help his team to an 11-point lead at the main break.
But Collingwood had its share of winners, too. Rhyce Shaw kept Simon Black to six possessions by half-time while gathering nine of his own, and the indefatigable Dane Swan, who always looks stronger the longer a match progresses, had 15. And while Lions full-back Daniel Merrett limited Anthony Rocca's output, Travis Cloke's sure hands and speed were too much for Joel Patfull. He is quickly becoming Collingwood's most important player.
Crucially, the Magpies also looked better at the fall of the ball, with Alan Didak, Leon Davis and Dale Thomas all creating and converting their limited opportunities. And in the third quarter, Collingwood's greater flexibility, fitness and, yes, maturity — quite a call for such a young list — began to tell.
Goals to Rocca, Chris Egan, Swan and Josh Fraser resulted in the Magpies reversing the half-time deficit by halfway through the term, and they led by 16 points at the last break. When the rain began to tumble down again, the Lions were always going to need their best shot.
That looked a bridge too far for the home team but it proved
within their capabilities.
FAST FOOTY
COLLINGWOOD 3.5 8.10 9.14 13.18 (96)
BRISBANE LIONS 3.3 7.5 12.12 13.16 (94)
GOALS: Brisbane Lions: Bradshaw 3, Charman 2,
Corrie 2, Brown 2, Drummond, Black, Power, Adcock.
Collingwood: Cloke 2, Rocca 2, Didak 2, Davis,
O'Bree, Thomas, Egan, Swan, Fraser, Medhurst.
BEST: Brisbane Lions: Power, Johnstone, Brennan,
Macdonald, Merrett, Charman. Collingwood: Swan,
Didak, R Shaw, Burns, O'Bree, Cloke.
INJURIES: Brisbane Lions: Drummond (quad).
Collingwood: Goldsack (nose, leg).
UMPIRES: M Vozzo, S Meredith, S Jeffery.
CROWD: 33,867 at the Gabba.
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