In their first game of the regular NEAFL season, the Brisbane Lions Reserves had a hard-fought loss against the Southport Sharks, in the end going down 13.12.90 to 14.14.98.
The Lions had the momentum after the first bounce and snared the first 3 goals of the match, leaving the Sharks scoreless inside the first 10 minutes of the game. Dominant football in the midfield saw Brisbane win key contests and keep the ball predominately in their attacking half, forcing Southport onto the back foot and giving the Lions a healthy 26-point lead at quarter time.
The second quarter saw a more even contest as Southport kicked into gear, trading goal for goal with the Lions for the first 10 minutes. Brisbane struggled to take chances midway through the second term with the ball going to ground numerous times which the Sharks capitalised on. Some straight kicking from Matt Hammelmann at the end of the quarter however saw the Lions maintain their lead going into the halftime break.
The Sharks turned it on for the home crowd in the third quarter and dominated contests in the midfield to earn the first goal of the second half. The Lions Reserves then pieced together some fluid passages of play to score the next three goals. Southport responded in emphatic fashion however to score five goals to Brisbane’s one in the last 10 minutes of the quarter and reduce the margin to a miserly 13 points.
The Sharks then carried their momentum into the final quarter, controlling the play and winning contested possessions to hit the lead for the first time in the match with 10 minutes left in the game. Some straight kicking from Tom Cutler gave the Lions a chance in the dying minutes but an amazing snap-kick from the boundary by ex-AFL star Jared Brennan put the Sharks back in front and gave them a boost to finish strongly and win by 8 points.
The Lions Reserves will be looking for their first win of the season next week when they take on the Redland Bombers at Tidbold Park on Saturday.
BRISBANE LIONS RESERVES 4.8 7.9 11.10 13.12 (90)
SOUTHPORT SHARKS 1.0 3.5 9.9 14.14 (98)
LIONS GOALS: Hammelmann 5, Cutler 3, Clayton, Staker, Smith, Aish, McGuinness
LIONS BEST: Hammelmann, Cutler, Aish
