Australian Football

Match Report

After their surprise loss to Collingwood last weekend, a routine win over the lowly Brisbane Lions has seen the GWS Giants jump back into the top four at the expense of Sydney, which narrowly lost to Hawthorn on Thursday night. As has been the case on several occasions this season, the Lions put up a good show in the first term to be within six points at quarter time before GWS blew them away with huge second and third quarters before rain restricted scoring in the final term as the Giants coasted to a 79-point win.

Rory Lobb kicked off the match with a behind for the Giants, but Brisbane looked good over the following 10 minutes and goals to Josh Schache and Tom Rockliff saw the Lions ahead by 11 points seven minutes into the first quarter. GWS then took complete control and peppered the goals with varying degrees of accuracy. Joel Patfull, Devon Smith and Jeremy Cameron all kicked majors, but the Giants also sprayed six other shots wide of the marks in that period, and a lie goal to Rhys Mathieson had Brisbane back within six points at quarter time.

Having wasted opportunities in front of goal in the first quarter, the Giants set about rectifying things early in the second. Cameron, Jonathon Patton and Josh Kelly also kicked truly, before Schache's second major had Brisbane back within 17 points. After a rushed behind to Giants (their only scoreboard blemish for the term), each side added another goal before GWS exploded to six consecutive goals to make it 10.1 for the term, the highest single-quarter score in the Giants' five-season history. By half time the margin was 51 points and the match as good as over. 

Any thought of a third-term revival from Brisbane was quickly put to bed as skipper Callan Ward goaled twice within the first three minutes. Dayne Zorko clawed one back for the Lions but another four majors in a row from GWS, including a third for the quarter to Ward, had the Giants out to a massive 86-point lead 22 minutes in. Brisbane, to its credit, fought out the term and goals to Rockliff and Eric Hipwood saw the three-quarter time back to 74 points. 

With rain having begun to fall late in the third quarter, goals became somewhat hard to come by in the last, for both sides. Indeed, the first 15 minutes saw the two teams combine to kick just six behinds - three each - with the margin still 74 points at the term's midway point. Nick Haynes broke the drought with his first at the 18-minute mark, extending the margin to 80 but Rohan Bewick responded for Brisbane three minutes later. Giant Dylan Shiel then scored the final major of the match as GWS cruised to a big win.

Callan Ward was among the most influential players for the Giants, with 31 touches to go to with his three third-quarter goals. For Brisbane, Dayne Zorko (28 disposals and six tackles) played a great game in the face of the GWS onslaught.

Back in the top four, GWS will have the chance to consolidate that place with a win over Port Adelaide at the Adelaide Oval. It will be no easy task, though, with the Power back in form and looking to push towards a top-eight berth. Brisbane, meanwhile, will meet Essendon at Docklands on the same day. With both sides on just one win for the year, it should be a very interesting encounter.

GOALS
Brisbane: Schache, Rockliff 2; Mathieson, Hanley, Zorko, Hipwood, Bewick
GWS: Cameron 3; Kelly, Ward 3; Greene, Patton, Smith, Haynes 2; Patfull, Kennedy, Lobb, Johnson, Shiel

BEST - AFL.COM.AU
Brisbane: Zorko, Rockliff, Hipwood, Mayes
GWS: Ward, Coniglio, Kelly, Shiel, Greene, Cameron

BEST - BRISBANETIMES.COM.AU
Brisbane: Zorko, Rockliff, Schache, Hipwood
GWS: Ward, Coniglio, Cameron, Kelly

INJURIES 
Brisbane: McStay (ankle), Lewis Taylor (corked leg) replaced in selected side by Ben Keays, 
GWS: Nil

UMPIRES: Brown, Harris, Pannell

TELEVISION BROADCAST: Fox Footy

COMMENTATORS: Dwayne Russell, Gerard Healy, Alastair Lynch, Ben Dixon