Add Category
Posted
There were statements of intent from prospective AFL premiers, and a notice to the league that some teams won't go quietly into the night on an action packed Saturday.
The Saturday stats tell their own story, but a few home truths were hammered home as both good and bad credentials were showcased around the country.
Essendon are back, and there's hope for Lions fans too...
In a topsy-turvy affair that had it all, Essendon and Brisbane produced arguably the best match of the day thanks to a frantic chase from the Lions and unerring finish from the Bombers.
In a gutting loss for Brisbane, Essendon prevailed by 27 points, but that hardly told the whole story as the Lions nearly produced a stunning turnaround to shock the visitors at the Gabba.
Brisbane overturned a 42-point lead inside the space of 20 minutes to briefly lead early in the fourth quarter. It was a glimmer of hope that showed the long-suffering Lions faithful that this season could yet produce something meaningful.
But Essendon's fans can probably look forward to a lot more, with their current team showing they're ready to shed the weary memories of the supplements saga once and for all.
Adelaide looks the business
Two from two and looking very strong. That's the story so far for the Adelaide Crows, who procured their first win over Hawthorn since 2011.
And what a win it was, with the Crows barging their way to a 24-point win in convincing fashion, with Tom Lynch looking irrepressible with 31 disposals.
In what may seem unfamiliar territory for the Hawks, Hawthorn finds itself among the early cellar dwellers with two losses in as many games, after losing to Essendon by 25 points in the opening round.
Nevertheless, it's way too soon to write the boys in gold in brown off, with Paul Puopolo catching the eye again while Tom Mitchell and Jaeger O'Meara combined for 75 disposals.
West Coast has gas in the tank
St Kilda fought and fought and fought. For three quarters, they looked worthy of beating the highly-fancied Eagles.
But the Eagles made a strong case for their premiership credentials, turning up when it mattered most and finding a way past a very stubborn opponent.
The midfielders seemed to find extra gas in the tank as West Coast accelerated in the fourth quarter, grabbing the lead once and decisively holding on to deny the unlucky Saints.
Part of that turnaround was thanks to Coleman medallist Josh Kennedy, with the forward overcoming a shonky radar early in the game to kick three goals in the final period to seal victory.
Giants' opening round was just a blip
All you'd hear from any pundit worth their salt in preseason was how GWS would finally put it all together and sweep away all comers this year.
And then they lost to Adelaide pretty convincingly in round one.
Consign that memory to the dustbin of history, then, as the early-season favourites for the AFL crown produced their first-ever 100-point win to utterly annihilate the Gold Coast Suns (more on them anon).
It was their biggest-ever win (beating the 92-pointer over Freo last year), and they had Jeremy Cameron to thank for the most part as he bagged six majors.
Steve Johnson looked pretty good too, picking up a trio of goals to take his career tally to a wonderful 499.
Gold Coast Suns fans, look away now...
For so long a promising outfit, the Suns' hard work of season past (where they repeatedly, and narrowly, missed out on finals footy) seems to have unravelled in brutal fashion.
Essentially destroyed and demolished by the Giants in the 24.16 (160) to 8.10 (58) loss at the Sydney Showgrounds, this Suns team looks more a collection of misfits than the once exciting band of brothers they were.
The Suns did manage to drag the deficit from a 52-point margin down to 22 in the third quarter, but the fact it ended up as a 102-point shellacking tells its own story.
Such risible fourth-quarter finishes surely makes for a gloomy season to come of opponents racing past them with regularity.
Topics: australian-football-league, sport, carrara-4211, brisbane-4000, qld, blacktown-2148, nsw, australia, adelaide-5000, sa, essendon-3040, vic, perth-6000, wa