Saturday’s 16.11 (107) to 12.10 (82) loss to St Kilda had numerous positives for the Brisbane Lions.
Stef Martin dominated in the ruck which propelled the Lions to a big win in clearances (44-27). Martin tallied 42 hit-outs (14 to advantage) compared to Saints ruckman Billy Longer’s 22 (6 to advantage).
The Lions scored four goals as a result of a chain starting from the centre bounce.
First possession - who gets their hands on the ball first from a stoppage - was even between the two teams, which means the Lions' pressure and tackling
The Lions won contested possessions by six, a good result considering this has been a key area of focus over the pre-season.
Second-year midfielder Jarrod Berry had his best game yet and finished with 19 disposals and three goals.
Charlie Cameron also chipped in with three goals in his first game for the Club.
The main negative from the match was the Lions’ poor kicking efficiency which was 14% worse than the Saints.
The Lions produced 30 clanger kicks which helped the Saints take a huge 130 uncontested marks.
85 of the Saints' points came from turnovers, compared to 37 points for the Lions.
A lot of these turnovers left the Lions exposed in defence, allowing the Saints many easy goals.
The home side kicked 11 goals from inside 30 metres and five from the goalsquare, compared to the Lions' four goals from inside 30 metres and one from the goalsquare.
The sheer amount of turnovers caused the Lions to do a lot more running than their opposition, which may have been behind the Saints' dominance in the last quarter.
If the Lions are able to clean up their kicking efficiency, thus reducing turnovers, they should be in with a great chance of upsetting Melbourne on Saturday at the Gabba.
