Brisbane Lions get revenge to reignite their AFLW finals hopes
The Lions went to Melbourne looking for revenge for their grand final loss to the Bulldogs last season and redemption for a poor fortnight and returned home on top of Conference B.
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The plan was perfect and so was the execution.
The Lions went to Melbourne looking for revenge for their grand final loss to the Bulldogs last season and redemption for a poor fortnight.
They returned home with their finals hopes reignited after a stunning 32-point victory on Saturday.
The win puts the Lions back on top of B conference.
While everything clicked for the Lions in the 7.7 (49) to 2.5 (17) win, it all started with their pressure.
They hunted the Bulldogs with an intensity missing in the previous two weeks.
Coach Craig Starcevich stressed to his players all week that if they could put the blowtorch on the premiers the offence would flow, and the fact they laid 20 more forward-half tackles than their opposition showed they listened.
“I’m really pleased, the things we spoke about in terms of how we nullify the opposition and then how we beat them once we get hold of the footy ourselves, most of what we discussed during the week came to fruition,’’ he said.
“On many weeks a lot of things you try to set up coaching wise don’t always come through.”
Starcevich admitted the side carried a grudge to Whitten Oval. Not only was there the grand final defeat to avenge but more urgently performances against Fremantle and Melbourne the past two weeks had to be atoned for.
“They were very determined to rectify the past couple of weeks,” he said.
“We have come up against two very good opponents the past two weeks so we were itching to right the wrongs.’’
Starcevich singled out teenagers McKenzie Dowrick and debutant Jessy Keeffe for their efforts but added it had been a complete team performance.
The defence, missing captain Leah Kaslar who was a late withdrawal with a calf injury, were superb, keeping Queenslander and star Bulldog Katie Brennan goalless and denying the hosts a goal until the seventh minute of the third term.
The midfield – led by Ally Anderson, Nat Exon and Emma Zielke – also produced their best collective effort of the season.
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