rye
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- Apr 24, 2022
- 3,117
- 8,352
- AFL Club
- Brisbane Lions
Brisbane Lions v Geelong
Gabba
7:30PM 20 April 2024
Brisbane Lions 2024 theme as reported by Sam McClure
Gabba
7:30PM 20 April 2024
Brisbane Lions 2024 theme as reported by Sam McClure
With a tumultuous start to the season including a trip to America that was only relevant 6 months after it happened, Brisbane finally find themselves hitting a bit of form in the last fortnight. With one of the most impressive performances of the Fagan era in a complete dominance of premiership fancy Melbourne on their home deck, Brisbane find themselves in a position to truly get their flag aspirations back on track. Unfortunately for them, they find themselves up against one of the form teams of the competition.
If there was ever a thing as a perennial contender in the AFL landscape, it would be Geelong. Despite the fact their fans seem to think everyone continually writes them off, anyone who has been paying attention for the last two decades know how the well-oiled Geelong engine keeps chugging along. Although it could be argued they have not faced meaningful opposition thus far, Geelong travel up to Brisbane being undefeated so far in season 2024. Seeking to bounce back from an underwhelming title defence last year, Geelong look close to being back to their best and with a healthy list pose a serious challenge to any opposition.
In a prime time AFL fixture, two premiership aspirants find themselves playing in what is in my unbiased opinion the match of the round.
Recent History
Most Brisbane fans would opine that we have been robbed in our last couple of visits to Kardinia Park. It is fortunate the AFL have decided we are now too big of a club to be sent to G Town and have scheduled our game at the Gabba. Geelong have traditionally traveled well to the Gabba, with the last encounter between these two teams at the venue being decided by 11 points.
Cal Ah Chee put in a terrific shift in Brisbane’s game against Geelong last year and cemented his spot in the best 22 for the remainder of that season. The win was unfortunately overshadowed by Will Ashcroft’s ACL injury. Fingers crossed Will’s rehab continues to progress positively.
Teams
Brisbane
It would be a slight understatement to say Brisbane currently have more injuries than they have grown accustomed to in recent times. Adding to the injuries woes is Zac Bailey expected to miss at least the next month with an ankle injury. Replacing Bailey is most likely to be achieved through magnet shuffling, with Cal Ah Chee to potentially spend more time forward. Brisbane welcome Conor McKenna back from injury, and I expect Bailey’s spot in the side to just be taken by McKenna. I would also give Tunstill a run at VFL level and make someone else a sub, with Dev Robertson being the most likely candidate.
Some posters have suggested moving Answerth to be sub. I think his form has been too good to be dropped, but also Brisbane’s next two games are against teams with incredibly potent small forwards. Answerth’s defensive capabilities will be very useful in shutting down Geelong’s small forwards, with the capacity to stifle link man Gryan Miers being very enticing. I would look at playing McKenna or Wilmot off a wing and rolling back more to allow for this.
In: McKenna, Robertson (Sub)
Out: Bailey, Tunstill (Sub)
Geelong
Geelong decided to treat their veterans conservatively in a week where they had a free win and kept Patrick Dangerfield, Jake Kolodjasnij and Tom Hawkins out of the side. Expect all three to return this week. Some of Geelong’s younger players likely make way for their premiership winning veterans. The only best 22 player Geelong will not have available for selection this week is Cam Guthrie who remains sidelined with a quad injury.
In: Dangerfield, Hawkins, Kolodjasnij
Out: Clark, Neale, O’Sullivan
Key Match ups
Jack Payne v Tom Hawkins
After being dropped due to a dismal game manning Charlie Curnow in round 0, Jack Payne has found his way back into a Brisbane lineup where he has cemented a position in the best 22 in the last 12 months. Although he has managed to build some form by playing on Nick Larkey and Ben Brown, Payne finds himself with a far more difficult assignment this round in Tom Hawkins. Perennially one of the games most imposing key forwards, Hawkins combination of strength and forward nous to find pockets of space to lead into make him a truly difficult opponent for any defender. It will be a team effort to quell Hawkins’ influence, with pressure from upfield crucial to limiting his opportunities. But on the other side of the ledger, Payne simply must maintain his competitiveness that he has displayed in the last two weeks. If Payne’s form reverts to that he displayed when manning Charlie Curnow in round 0, Hawkins could very well fill his boots with a significant haul of goals.
Darcy Gardiner v Tom Stewart
Finding himself in a new role in season 2024, Darcy Gardiner finds himself making a late career shift to the Key Forward post. Results from this change have been somewhat underwhelming to begin the year from a goals perspective, but the success of this move may be measured more in how Gardiner allows Brisbane to maintain their preferred structure of 3 tall forwards. Gardiner has taken a role in attempting to stifle the influence of the oppositions best interceptor and will likely find himself tasked with stopping arguably the AFL’s best in this role in Tom Stewart. Stewart is Geelong’s most important structural piece, being both their best defender as well as one of their most reliable options for rebounding. Stifling his influence both at cutting off Brisbane’s ball movement as well as his work in Geelong’s transition would go a long way to Brisbane winning. Gardiner’s game should be judged on his effectiveness in neutering Stewart’s impact more than anything else if given the assignment. He would hope to have a better effect than he did on Jake Lever, who frequently peeled off without worry to intercept Brisbane’s kicks inside forward 50.
Random Thoughts
Cam Rayner had his official ‘break out game’ according to some esteemed pundits against the Demons last Thursday. With some brilliant work around stoppages and a perfect 10 in the coaches’ votes, a certain Melbourne fan has been left trying to pick the pieces of his Bigfooty career back up on the main board. Our learned friend does make a somewhat valid point in that Rayner has struggled to back performances like this up in the past. Brisbane’s prospects this season depend a lot on elevation from the 21-25 year old cohort which includes Rayner, and seeing him perform strongly in the midfield against Geelong would go a long way to show that he has truly arrived as a consistent star rather than being the tease he has been to this point in his career.Geelong’s standout attribute as a team is their capacity to transition from their defensive half to their forward line with great speed and composure. This well drilled aspect to their game generally helps to cover for their average midfield and is what lead them to a premiership in 2022. Brisbane for their part have put much emphasis on team defence since the 2022 season, and Geelong is arguably the greatest test to show how far the Lions have come in this regard. If Brisbane’s team defence looks like it did against Melbourne, it will go a long way to preventing the quick transition the likes of Stengle, Miers and Cameron thrive off.
Much has been said about Oscar McInerney’s slow start to 2024. He won’t find many opponents easier to matchup on this year from a pure ruck contest standpoint than Rhys Stanley. Hopefully an easier opponent is what is needed to kick the Big O into gear, as Brisbane look far more dangerous when he is connecting well the midfield and getting into dangerous spots around the ground. The qualifying and preliminary final last year are two great games to showcase what an in form McInerney provides to this Brisbane side.
Prediction
Geelong’s undefeated run comes to an end at the Gabbatoir. David King questions what they stand for and where they are at on First Crack. Brisbane are back baby.
Brisbane by 18
that is Rayner.
