Never-say-die Lions lift levels to chase down Dogs (2025)

REIGNING premier Brisbane has made a 5-0 start for the first time in the club’s post-Fitzroy history, overwhelming the Western Bulldogs in the second half at Norwood Oval.

Down by 39 points early in the third quarter in 30-degree-plus conditions on Saturday, the Lions ramped up their pressure and stormed past the Bulldogs for an 18.10 (118) to 14.13 (97) win.

Fittingly, Brisbane key forward Eric Hipwood kicked his side's last two goals of the game to claim a bag of five - all in the second half.

After only one disposal to half-time, Hipwood was crucial as Brisbane fought its way back into the game and again showed they are comeback kings, kicking a whopping 14 goals in the second half under a full moon.

BULLDOGS v LIONS Full match coverage and stats

"I'd rather not win that way all the time - no good for the heart or the health," Lions coach Chris Fagan said post-match.

"But they're a tremendous group, our blokes, they believe in themselves.

"We got to half-time and we had a bit of a conversation about how poor we were in the contest - we were getting walloped; we were getting smashed out of centre bounces.

"But the second half, we were able to turn it around, which is a good sign."

The last 5-0 season start in the combined Lions' history came from Fitzroy in 1948. The Brisbane Bears never went close.

"That's a long time, isn't it? I've never been a premiership coach (before now), but the one thing I was worried about - what are we going to be like (this) year?," Fagan said.

"We had a lot of conversations about that over the summer, about staying humble, but having confidence as well.

"I don't think the group has gotten ahead of itself, but that's an early call."

Logan Morris kicked four goals, while defender Jaspa Fletcher was outstanding throughout with 25 possessions and Hugh McCluggage had a game-high 32 disposals.

One of the features of a cracking match was the duel between star Bulldogs key forward Sam Darcy and Brisbane's All-Australian defender Harris Andrews.

Darcy was outstanding and kicked two goals, also spending time in the ruck, but Andrews' pressure on him when the Bulldogs star was in attack was relentless.

"It was a good battle, I reckon," Fagan said. "It was a bit of a nil-all draw."

The Bulldogs lost the lead early in the last quarter, but two quick goals from brought them back to within two points.

But they botched a kick-out and Cam Rayner's goal at 23 minutes, plus another from Callum Ah Chee two minutes later, settled the result.

Fagan wondered whether the Bulldogs' loss to Fremantle in the Perth heat last Sunday took a toll on the Bulldogs as this game wore on, but his counterpart Luke Beveridge said it was no excuse.

"We played well in that first half, we had most things in our favour - all the things we talked about pre-game that were going to be important to beat them," Beveridge said.

"We talked at half-time, that there are no rewards yet, because we knew they were going to come out maybe with a new vigour.

"It's encouraging to hang in there. It's a shame in many ways, but there are some positives to be taken out of it."

The Bulldogs struck trouble early when a foot injury forced midfielder James Harmes out of the game in the first few minutes.

Darcy Wilmot kicked a goal on the run late in the quarter and the Lions led by five points at the first change.

The Bulldogs then cut loose, kicking three goals in four minutes to pile the pressure on Brisbane.

Lions young gun Levi Ashcroft briefly stopped the rot with a goal to bring the margin back to six points, but then the floodgates opened as the Bulldogs piled on another four majors.

There could have been a fifth to cap that run immediately before half-time, but a score review found Andrews had touched Darcy's shot at goal off the boot.

Regardless, the Bulldogs were on top around the ground and led by 33 points at the main break.

Darcy and fellow talls Rory Lobb, Aaron Naughton and Tim English were prominent, as Tom Liberatore and Ed Richards were busy at the stoppages and Rhylee West racked up possessions across half-forward.

When Darcy kicked his second goal, five minutes into the third quarter, the Dogs had a game-high lead of 39 points.

Brisbane went to work, kicking the next six to trail by only one goal at the last break.

Hipwood came alive, kicking three goals in the third quarter and causing massive trouble for the Bulldogs' defenders.

Rayner, McCluggage, Josh Dunkley and Lachie Neale were also prominent as the premiers flexed their considerable muscle.

The Bulldogs, meanwhile, missed critical shots on goal as they lost composure and Darcy needed time off the ground for a hamstring test.

Naughton kicked three goals for the Bulldogs and Richards had 29 disposals.

Eric does the Hippy Hippy shake
After a one-disposal first half it looked like Eric Hipwood was in for a night to forget, but by the final siren his performance was one he, and everyone else at Norwood Oval, will remember for quite a while. Three goals in the third quarter and two more in the last proved too much for the Dogs, who could only watch as Eric danced the hippy-hippy shake.

The Doctor writes his own prescription
It's been a big debut season for Sam Davidson with the mature-age recruit racking up disposals and metres gained, but it was a sneaky little three-footer that caught the attention on Saturday. The Dogs were on fire in the second quarter and Lachie Bramble appeared to slot his second for the term with a long bomb from the pocket. Commentators and stats sheets had the goal next to Bramble's name before replays showed Davidson getting an unnecessary toe to the Sherrin just inches from the line.

Lions more at home on skinny strip
Norwood Oval is one of the more uniquely dimensioned AFL grounds. A relatively typical length of 164m is mismatched with an almost little-league worthy width of just 109m, making for an often crowded alleyway from defence to attack that favours a clearance-winning midfield. While the Lions did win at the bounces, it wasn't by a large margin (+3), however they did have experience in their favour having played at the ground last year. The Bulldogs had their first hit-out on the narrow Norwood strip on Saturday and will only be wiser for the experience.

WESTERN BULLDOGS 2.4 9.8 11.12 14.13 (97)
BRISBANE 3.3 4.5 11.6 18.10 (118)

GOALS
Western Bulldogs: Naughton 3, Darcy 2, Sanders, Freijah, Dolan, Davidson, Bramble, West, Williams, Kennedy, McNeil
Brisbane: Hipwood 5, Morris 4, Bailey 3, Rayner 2, Ah Chee 2, Wilmot, L.Ashcroft

BEST
Western Bulldogs: English, Lobb, Richards, Darcy, Sanders, Bramble
Brisbane: McCluggage, Neale, Fletcher, Hipwood, L.Ashcroft, Bailey

INJURIES
Western Bulldogs: Harmes (foot)
Brisbane: Nil

SUBSTITUTES
Western Bulldogs:Josh Dolan, replaced James Harmes in the first quarter
Brisbane: Will McLachlan, replaced Bruce Reville in the fourth quarter

Crowd: TBC at Norwood Oval