THE Brisbane Lions’ "local" rivals, the Kangaroos, will take on Port Adelaide in next weekend’s preliminary finals after staging a remarkable form reversal to end Hawthorn’s season on Saturday night.
The Kangaroos, who this year played three home games on the Gold Coast for the first time, were belted by Geelong by 106 points in week one of the finals. But they got the upper hand on the Hawks early on Saturday evening and then withstood several surges, eventually kicking away in the final quarter to win by 33 points.
That result, combined with Collingwood’s thrilling 19-point extra-time victory over West Coast, provides a good form reference for the Lions’ second half of the home-and-away campaign.
The Lions narrowly lost to Port Adelaide in Round 13 before traveling to Perth and upsetting West Coast in Round 14. A five-game winning streak followed, including victories over Collingwood (93 points) and the Kangaroos (47 points).
Assessing the bigger story of the weekend – the Kangaroos’ comeback or Collingwood’s gutsy win – is a hard task, but a measure of the quality of another intriguing round of finals football.
The Magpies appeared down and out when they trailed the reigning premiers Eagles by 23 points more than halfway through the third term. But Mick Malthouse’s side tapped into hidden stores of energy, kicking three consecutive goals just before three-quarter-time and then digging deepest in the first final to go to extra time for 13 years.
The Roos, on the other hand, made a bright start but looked like being overrun by the young Hawks at various stages after half time.
The Dean Laidley-coached outfit, however, had other ideas and rallied to win by more than five goals – an astonishing 139-point turnaround on last week’s performance against Geelong.
Collingwood 13.15 (93) def West Coast 10.14 (74) [extra time]
The Magpies set up a preliminary final date with minor premier Geelong with a stunning extra-time victory over the Eagles.
After a hotly-contested first half, West Coast looked to have the game in its grasp when it led by 23 points in the third quarter. But John Worsfold’s decision to rest Dean Cox and Darren Glass late in the term backfired in a big way when Glass’ opponent Anthony Rocca – well-held for the remainder of the night – broke free to help Collingwood kick three straight goals.
The Magpies again seemed destined for the canvas when Mark LeCras' second major gave the Eagles a break of more than a goal midway through the final term. Collingwood, however, fought on and, with scores tied at the end of regulation, extra time followed for only the second occasion in league history.
The Pies, led by 38-possession hero Dane Swan, had the better of the additional period and ran out 19-point winners in a truly momentous match.
Collingwood had ruckman Josh Fraser pull out pre-match with back trouble, while West Coast, already minus Chris Judd, Ben Cousins and Daniel Kerr, lost defender Beau Waters before the opening bounce and key forward Ashley Hansen (hamstring re-occurrence) not long after it.
Kangaroos 14.9 (93) def Hawthorn 8.12 (60)
The Roos spent most of the week under siege after a lacklustre display against Geelong, but finished it triumphant with a 33-point win over Hawthorn. Many commentators expected Dean Laidley’s side to be overwhelmed by a Hawks team that had snatched a dramatic win over Adelaide the week before. Yet the Roos defied the odds, and their wealth of contributors proved vital.
Aaron Edwards was a surprise star in the forward line with four goals and a genuine contender for mark of the year, while Brady Rawlings had 21 touches and kept Luke Hodge to only eight. Brent Harvey bounced back from a below-par outing against the Cats with four important second-half goals.
The Hawks’ forward pairing of Lance Franklin and Jarryd Roughead was largely starved of supply, with Laidley’s decision to pit an undersized Josh Gibson against Franklin a brave but effective one.
