ON MONDAY morning, Brisbane Lions coach Leigh Matthews doubted whether Jed Adcock would be fit to play in round two.
Come Friday night, however, and the talented young midfielder not only took the field, but was one of his side’s best players in a thrilling two-point win over Collingwood, bobbing up to snap the winning goal with two minutes remaining.
“It was a fantastic win for us – good for our experience and we showed a lot of heart in that last quarter,” Adcock said.
“I probably haven’t had a bigger thrill than (kicking that goal). Your first game is always a thrill but this was just a case of being in the right spot at the right time I think.
“Once I’d kicked it I was pretty confident it would go through but I was a bit nervous when I got the ball, and it was one of those ones you just throw on the boot.
“I actually thought I’d ruined it about two seconds later when I kicked it backwards out of the middle of the ground but we got lucky.”
Questions over Adcock’s availability arose after he was forced to sit out the last three quarters of the round one loss to West Coast with a knock to the lower leg.
While the Lions medical staff were cautious about the injury, Adcock was always optimistic about playing against the Magpies – mainly on account of history.
“The same thing actually happened in the NAB Cup match in Cairns last year,” he said.
“I got a knock that messed with the nerves and at first it was thought that I’d broken something – I couldn’t move my foot.
“But by Wednesday it had started to feel pretty good.”
Like his coach, Adcock believes Friday night’s victory will help the Lions build a platform for the rest of 2008.
“It’s only round two but if we’d gone 0-2 we would have had our backs against the wall and would really have had to dig deep to find a way back,” he said.
“At 1-1 we’re probably sitting with about half the competition just around that top eight.
“With the prep the guys had, coming off the Perth trip and a hard game, with a six-day break and all the travel, it’s really all credit to them. The hard work in the pre-season is really starting to pay off.”
