Brisbane Lions stage stunning comeback as Essendon blow lead and finals hopes
BY blowing a 27-point lead Essendon not only dropped a crucial four points to Brisbane but may have dashed their finals hopes in the process.
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JOHN Worsfold’s Essendon just keeps inventing new ways to conjure defeat from the jaws of victory.
A club that knows a bit about self-destructing might have in the space of a fortnight done exactly that to its finals changes.
Last week they were seemingly coasting against Sydney until they handed the Swans victory in a four-minute blitzkrieg of errors.
SUNDAY BLOG: RE-CAP ALL THE DAY’S ACTION AND REACTION
Sunday they plumbed even greater depths with a defeat that could very well destroy their season.
What do you want to talk about first?
The horrific last quarter where they coughed up six of the last seven goals after Joe Daniher’s point handed them a 27-point lead four minutes in?
Or the Jobe Watson inboards kick that sailed over Tom Bellchambers and saw the Lions snatch a one-point lead with two minutes remaining?
Or the Ryan Lester goal with 80 seconds remaining as the Lion marked at the top of the goalquare with not one Bomber flying?
Maybe just the general lack of fight and intensity when it was obvious to 41,000 Etihad Stadium fans that the Lions were closing hard?
As a result of all those key moments and more Essendon is 6-8 ahead of a clash with Collingwood and suddenly all of out that early-season momentum.
Not good enough. Not even close. Fans deserve so much better. 41,000 came out today and we let you down.
— Xavier Campbell (@XCampbell79) 2 July 2017
Lions defender Darcy Gardiner spoke for a generation when he tore off Cale Hooker’s hipster man bun in an early marking contest.
How often have you wanted to do just that, even if the Lions’ defender’s action took place an accidental marking contest?
But even as Dayne Zorko and Eric Hipwood kept the Lions in touch early this game, that moment still seemed a flesh wound.
And yet just when the poise of Brendon Goddard and Joe Daniher’s three-goal haul seemed to have Essendon comfortable, it hit a wall.
Brisbane just kept coming despite 18 less inside-50s.
Post-match Chris Fagan said the Lions’ ploy had been to deny the Bombers uncontested marks after being torched early in the year by that tactic.
It worked a treat, with the midfield stars in Zach Merrett (19 possessions), David Zaharakis (17) and Travis Colyer (13) generally poor.
Brendon Goddard did what good players do after games like his Sydney shocker, they bounce back hard.
Playing on a wing he added the required class to proceedings, with Watson racking up good numbers but not joined by enough midfield mates.
Essendon just had to win this game no matter how ugly against a Brisbane side already missing Dayne Beams.
And yet despite 61 inside 50s and a dozen more tackles they couldn’t get it done.
With the game reaching no great heights it was left to the curiosities to entertain on a day Kevin Sheedy was feted for 50 years in football.
At one stage Goddard came off the bench at an Essendon kick-out and actually hid in the shadows on the centre wing until the ball found him.
That was a Sheedy-esque tactic if ever there was one, with the ball twice cannoning into unsuspecting umpires on a bizarre old day.
At one stage Chris Fagan was so frustrated with a mistake he fell to the coaches box floor in mock-collapse.
He admitted post-match he was actually ducking down to swear loudly but could joke about it after pulling off a famous win.
In the other box John Worsfold’s language must have been tearing paint off the walls given the botched execution of the dying stages.
Curiously, Essendon put no time into Zorko after five possessions on Sam Reid last week and his two goals helped them take the second-quarter lead.
Then when all seemed lost they came from the clouds in a victory that could shape Essendon’s season.
VOTES
3. Eric Hipwood
2. Dayne Zorko
1. Brendon Goddard
BEST
ESSENDON: B.Goddard, M.Hurley, J.Daniher, D.Heppell, A.McGrath, C.Hooker
BRISBANE: E.Hipwood, D.Zorko, A.Witherden, R.Bewick, T.Cutler, H.Andrews, S.Mayes
Originally published as Brisbane Lions stage stunning comeback as Essendon blow lead and finals hopes
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