Lions last minute blues as Carlton force a draw
The Lions have narrowly kept their undefeated streak alive in the AFLW with a 5.7-37 to 6.1-37 draw in the final round. They will now enter the first ever AFLW Grand Final against Adelaide who overcame Collingwood to qualify in front of Melbourne.
The Lions started slow and let the Blues control the game for most of the first quarter. The Lions were unable to score but also were able to keep the Blues to just 1 goal for the quarter. Virgo and Bates picking up 13 Disposals between them to keep the Blues at bay during a tough first quarter.
The Second was again a slow one for the Lions though managing to get a goal on the board after some great run down work from McCarthy and then delivery into the forward line. The half finishing at just 1 goal a piece.
As the second half started the Lions started to show why they are undefeated this year and started to put some relentless pressure on Carlton and locked the ball in their forward half for most of the third quarter. They kicked 2.3 to Carlton's solitary goal and looked to be in control of the match-up.
The last Quarter started where the third left off with Brisbane dominating all over the ground. They extended their lead to almost 4 goals but seemed to take their foot off the pedal as a determined Carlton outfit started to wrestle back control of the game with a couple of goals for themselves. The Blues were able to get themselves within a goal and with 27 seconds left they scored an equalizer that must have made the Lions nervous going into the last bounce. The ball didnt leave the centre square after the ball up and the game ended in a draw to keep Brisbane undefeated but also give them a small wake up call. A performance like this next week will surely see a much stronger Adelaide team snatch away the premiership cup.
The team is still however the favourites going into the game and definitely had eyes on next week during this game. The Yeronga girls had another outstanding game with Emily Bates showing again why she was picked at #2 in the draft with a 22 disposal, 3 mark and 3 tackle game. Sam Virgo had a strong first quarter and continued to be the Lions best rebounding defender with 9 disposals and 3 tackles and Kate McCarthy kicking another goal to finish 3rd in the leading goal kicker for the regular season behind spearheads Darcy Vescio and Sarah Perkins. Bates was again named in the Best for Brisbane in the AFL match report.
The Grand Final next week between the Brisbane Lions and the Adelaide Crows will be on Saturday 25th of March with a decision on the venue expected to be announced today. The game will be broadcast Live on Channel 7 & on afl.com.au.