Why Zorko was ‘disappointed’ with Lions’ prelim epic
Oliver Caffrey |
Brisbane wasted little time in celebrating one of the greatest AFL games ever, but star veteran Dayne Zorko has expressed his disappointment in letting a big last-quarter lead slip.
The Lions booked their spot in a fourth straight grand final by pipping Hawthorn by nine points in a preliminary final that has already been written into folklore.
Part of the reason why it was so memorable is because the Lions, seemingly cruising towards another decider, conceded five consecutive goals after they were 28 points in front in the final quarter.
In a roller-coaster last term, the Lions got back in front for good with just 18 seconds remaining after Hugh McCluggage calmly slotted a goal following a holding-the-ball decision paid against Jarman Impey.
Zorko was thrilled to beat the Hawks – their third straight preliminary final win at the MCG – but was left puzzled by the late lapse.
“From a spectator’s point of view, you guys probably would have experienced the highs and lows just like we did on the field,” he said.
“We were obviously rapt to get the result, but to let a 28-point lead slip in the last quarter and potentially not be in this situation to have an opportunity to play in the grand final, that was something that we were pretty disappointed about.
“We took a lot of learnings away from that on Monday and reviewed the game really, really well.”
The Lions arrived in Melbourne on Wednesday, as they have done for their past two successful grand final campaigns.
Brisbane will hold their main training session on Thursday, when defender Noah Answerth will push his case for selection.
After hurting his ankle in the qualifying final loss against Sydney, Answerth has missed the past two wins.
Brisbane sorely missed the lockdown defender against Hawthorn, small forward Nick Watson running riot with six goals.
Answerth had previously kept All-Australian Watson goal-less in Brisbane’s round-22 thumping of the Hawks.
AAP