Brisbane Lions (8-7, 7th - 32 points) v West Coast Eagles (2-13, 15th - 8 points)
Saturday 19 July 2008
The Gabba @ 7:10pm (local time)
The Lions in partnership with AFLQ, Triple M and Network Ten will celebrate Queensland’s contribution to 150 Years of Australian Football during the pre-match entertainment which includes:
- a special 5-minute scoreboard DVD presentation
- the unveiling of a giant 40m x 25m Lions Guernsey on the Gabba
- an on-field interview or speech from an AFL legend and other activities from 6:30pm.
2008 AFLQ STATE LEAGUE SEASON: ROUND 15
Suncoast Lions (8-5-1, 3rd) v Southport (9-4-1, 2nd)
Saturday 19 July 2008
The Gabba @ 3:20pm (local time) - curtain raiser
PUBLIC TRAINING SESSIONS
Wednesday 16 July: The Gabba @ 3pm. Entry via Gate 2 from 2:15pm.
Friday 18 July: The Gabba @ 11am. Entry via Gate 2 from 10:15am.
CURRENT INJURY LIST
Colm Begley (Quad) – Available
Pat Garner (Hamstring) – Available
Jonathan Brown (Hip) – Test
Simon Black (AC Joint) – Test
Matt Austin (Achilles) – Test
Joel Macdonald – 1 week
Matthew Leuenberger (Knee) – TBC
Nigel Lappin (Achilles) – TBC
WARNER BROS. MOVIE WORLD FAMILY FUN DAY
All Vodafone Brisbane Lions members and supporters are invited to join some Lions players at Movie World on Sunday 20 July for the Club's third Family Fun Day for 2008 - the morning after the Round 16 Lions v West Coast clash at the Gabba.
The attending Lions players will conduct an autograph and photo session with fans at the top of the Movie World Main Street from 12 noon till 1pm.
Members will receive a significant discount on their admission tickets simply by presenting their 2008 Lions membership card at the front gate.
Members that pre-book their tickets through the Lions will receive further entry discounts and enter the draw to win an exclusive ride of either Superman or Batwing with a Lions player. Members can pre-book their tickets by calling the Club on 07 3335 1777 and quoting their membership number.
2008 AFL PREMIERSHIP SEASON: ROUND 16, HEAD TO HEAD
The Lions have won 5 of their 18 matches against West Coast for a winning percentage of 28%.
LAST FOUR YEARS
2005: Round 5 - L - 12.12 (84) to 23.19 (157) @ Gabba (lost by 73pts)
2005: Round 16 - L - 13.10 (88) to 17.9 (111) @ Subiaco (N) (lost by 23pts)
2006: Round 5 - L - 9.9 (63) to 18.14 (122) @ Subiaco (N) (lost by 59pts)
2006: Round 20 - L - 7.10 (52) to 16.18 (114) @ Gabba (lost by 62pts)
2007: Round 14 - W - 13.13 (91) to 9.10 (64) @ Subiaco (N) (won by 27pts)
2008: Round 1 - L - 11.10 (76) to 14.8 (92) @ Subiaco (N) (lost by 16pts)
FAST FOOTY FACTS
Current AFL Statistical Leaderboards:
Goals: =4th Daniel Bradshaw - 51 goals, =4th Jonathan Brown - 51 goals
Goal Assists: =2nd Luke Power - 17
Disposals: =9th Luke Power - 384
Handballs: 6th Luke Power - 201
Contested Possessions: 3rd Simon Black - 150, =6th Luke Power - 137
Centre Clearances: 5th Simon Black - 74
Marks: =6th Jonathan Brown - 118
Contested Marks: =7th Jonathan Brown - 28, 10th Daniel Bradshaw - 25
Hitouts: 6th Jamie Charman - 287
Tackles: =6th Luke Power - 78, =9th Rhan Hooper - 75
Running Bounces: 9th Joel Macdonald - 46
One percenters: 1st Daniel Merrett - 103, 6th Joel Patfull - 85
The Eagles have won their past four matches against the Lions at the Gabba by an average of 54 points. The Lions’ most recent win against West Coast at the Gabba was in Round 20 of 2002.
The Eagles have won only two matches this season - one of which was against the Lions back in Round 1 at Subiaco. West Coast’s other victory was against Adelaide in Round 9 also at Subiaco.
The Eagles hold the best record of any AFL team against the Lions since their 1997 merger.
Daniel Bradshaw’s four goals against Essendon last Saturday night moved him up to seventh place on the Lions’ all-time leading goal-kickers list ahead of former Fitzroy forward Richard Osborne. Bradshaw has now kicked a career total 414 goals and is only 28 goals behind both Jim Freake and Allan Ruthven on the Club’s all-time leading goal-kickers list.
The Lions lost consecutive games for the first time this season after being defeated by Essendon.
The Lions are currently ranked 16th (last) in the AFL for both total disposals (4,819) and marks (1,240) this season.
The Lions are currently ranked second in the AFL for tackles with 894 tackles, behind only the Sydney Swans who have laid 907 tackles so far in 2008.
Former Lions triple premiership captain Michael Voss will be supporting the West Coast Eagles as Assistant Coach under John Worsfold for the next two seasons.
LAST TIME THEY MET
The Brisbane Lions’ 2008 premiership campaign got off to a horror start over in Perth as the West Coast Eagles piled on the game’s first six goals to take a commanding first quarter lead.
With a 37-point gap to make up in hot conditions and star midfielder Jed Adcock off injured, the Lions dug deep and gradually clawed themselves back into the contest. Co-captain Jonathan Brown featured heavily in the gutsy revival with four crucial first half goals.
The Lions found themselves in front and with the momentum late in the third term, but the Eagles steadied soon after with four goals to two in the final term, to run out eventual winners by 16 points.
Reigning Club Champion Brown was the star up forward with six goals while fellow co-captain Simon Black worked tirelessly in the midfield gathering 30 disposals.
Daniel Kerr was brilliant for the Eagles in the first half but his influence was curtailed by Luke Power who was moved onto the dangerous midfielder at half-time. Colm Begley and Josh Drummond were also prominent, providing great attacking drive out of defence.
150 Years of Australian Footy – Queensland's contribution
Prologue - 1858
On 7 August 2008 it will be exactly 150 years since the first recorded game of Australian Football. It was played near the site of today’s MCG between Scotch College and Melbourne Grammar with 40 gents per side, a spherical ball, no point posts and it took three Saturdays to complete.
The match followed the Rugby School custom of the ‘best of three goals’ – whichever side kicked two goals first would win.
After a goal to each team on 7 August, the game was postponed at dusk until Saturday 21 August 1858. On this second day, another three-hour hard struggle was fought with both teams unsuccessful at grabbing that elusive winning goal. The game was again adjourned for a fortnight.
The last day of the schoolboys’ match was contested on Saturday 4 September by a struggling mass of lads and was ultimately drawn when the sun went down. Australian Football was born…
Today – July 2008
This year the AFL is celebrating 150 Years of Australian Football and Round 16 is Queensland’s turn to be honoured for its contribution to footy and its tremendous history.
The Brisbane Lions v West Coast clash at the Gabba on Saturday night 19 July will become centre stage for Queensland’s recognition with a series of pre-match activities.
Gabba patrons are invited to enter the stadium early at 6:30pm to see a special scoreboard DVD presentation of Aussie Rules history with a strong ‘maroon-grown’ flavour.
This will be followed by the unveiling of a giant 25m x 40m Lions Guernsey on the field by 150 competition winners from Triple M and Network Ten wearing special 150 Year celebration T-shirts and caps plus 100 invited members from local junior and senior AFL clubs wearing their own club Guernseys. Finally, a local AFL legend will be interviewed or make a short speech on the field.
This pre-game presentation will be perfected during a full dress rehearsal on the preceding Thursday evening at the Gabba from 5 – 6:30pm which is open to all media to attend. Chief organiser and major events specialist Kerrie Hayes will be available for interviews on the day.
The Lions are also using the occasion to celebrate its strong partnership with South-East Queensland’s Junior and Senior State AFL Clubs. The Lions have organised ticketing promotions and discount packages to encourage match attendances by these clubs and is hosting 200 of their representatives at a Queensland Room Gabba function before the first siren.
The Brisbane Lions now invite South-East Queensland to be a part of history by celebrating Queensland’s and the Lions’ history together at this milestone event under lights on Saturday 19 July against West Coast at the Gabba.
Epilogue – August 2008
The 150 Year celebrations won’t end for Queenslanders at the final siren of the Lions v West Coast fixture. The AFL is also encouraging ALL Australians to kick a footy just 19 days later on Thursday 7 August for its massive Kick Around Australia event on footy’s actual 150th birthday.
Kick Around Australia Day provides an opportunity for all Australians to join in the celebrations and wear their football colours or bring a footy to work or school or park or backyard and have a kick.
A number of AFL players will visit schools to take part in the Kick Around Australia activities with official 150 Years ambassador Kevin Sheedy and other AFL identities providing their support. To find out more, please visit www.150years.com.au
QUEENSLAND FOOTBALL HISTORY TIMELINE
1866 On 22 May 1866 Queensland’s first club was formed at the Metropolitan Hotel in Brisbane by a group of cricketers who, as winter approached, sought a sporting alternative to keep fit. They chose what the locals referred to as ‘Victorian Rules’ and gave birth to the Brisbane Australian Football Club. In 1868-69 there were four clubs - Brisbane, the Volunteer Artillery, Brisbane Grammar School and the Civil Service. In 1870 an Ipswich team joined necessitating an overnight journey on a steamer for matches.
1879 The Queensland Football Association (QFA) was formed to administer a game flourishing in the Brisbane / Ipswich area.
1883 Queensland sent delegates to the Inter-Colonial Football Conference where the Australian Football Council was formed. At the time Queensland boasted more than 300 teams.
1884 Queensland played its first interstate match losing to New South Wales 3-16 to 7-10. Behinds were recorded in the scores at the time but did not actually count until 1897.
1885 Australian football was the first-choice code of the grammar schools in Queensland, with Ipswich Grammar beating Toowoomba Grammar at North Ipswich in 1885 before catching an overnight train to play Brisbane Grammar the following day.
1888 Queensland attracted more than 5,000 people to the Brisbane Exhibition Ground for a match against VFL club Melbourne, prompting the Wikipedia website to record that ‘by the 1880s Australian football was the most prominent football code in the state’.
1890 South Melbourne visited Queensland to play Brisbane, Ipswich and Queensland.
1903 On 29 July 1903 the Queensland Football League (QFL) was formed.
1904 On 18 June 1904 at Queens Park in the Brisbane Botanical Gardens the first premiership game was played. This revived the sport which had stagnated through the 1890s after independent school headmasters in 1887 adopted ‘rugby football’ as their preferred code by a one-vote majority. The decision was reportedly influenced by the recent creation of a Queensland-based governing body for rugby and strong resistance to the word ‘Victorian’ in the name of the sport. The first premiership was shared by Norths, Souths and Wests.
1905 Games were first played at the Brisbane Cricket Ground (Gabba). City became the first team to win the QFL premiership outright.
1914 A promotional carnival was played in Brisbane involving VFL club Collingwood and teams from Perth, Adelaide and Hobart.
1927 The DeLittle Medal for the ‘Best & Fairest & Manliest Player’ in the competition was first awarded to Neil Brown of Windsor. The medal continued until 1942 when the competition ceased due to World War II. A meeting of the Australian National Football Council decided that each of the state leagues were to include the words 'Australian National' in their names so the QFL was renamed the Queensland Australian National Football League (QANFL).
1946 Doug Pittard of Western Districts won the first J.A.Grogan Medal which replaced the DeLittle Medal after the war.
1948 Erwin Dornau became the first Queenslander to play in the VFL. A Kedron junior, he was a centre half back who caught the eye of South Melbourne scouts when runner-up in the 1947 Tassie Medal at the national carnival in Hobart. He played 54 VFL games at South from 1948-52.
1950 The Brisbane Exhibition Ground hosted the national carnival.
1952 The Brisbane Exhibition Ground hosted a Monday night VFL match between Essendon and Geelong. It was part of the Round 8 fixture in which all games were played in regional and interstate venues for promotional reasons. It was the first official VFL match to be played under floodlights after being rescheduled from the previous Saturday due to torrential rain. Essendon won 23.17.155 to 12.14.86.
1954 The Townsville Football League was formed. This was a forerunner to regional Leagues in Cairns (1955), Mt Isa (1957), Ipswich & West Moreton (1961), Gold Coast (1962), the Sunshine Coast (1969), Mackay (1970), Darling Downs (1971) and Rockhampton (1974).
1959 Australian football returned to the Gabba after a long absence.
1961 The Gabba hosted the national carnival.
1964 The QANFL changed its name to the Queensland Australian Football League (QAFL).
1974 Queensland won the Division 2 title at the National Football League Championships in Canberra in 1974.
1975 Queensland beat Tasmania for the first time at the Gabba.
1977 Queensland beat the VFA for the first time at the Gabba.
1981 Essendon defeated Hawthorn in a VFL premiership match at the Gabba.
1985 Queensland completed a hat-trick of wins in the quadrangular interstate series against Tasmania, ACT and NSW – a huge fillip for the code in Queensland and a forerunner to the birth of the Brisbane AFL Club.
1986 On 6 October 1986 a privately-owned syndicate headed by Christopher Skase and Paul Cronin and including the QAFL, was awarded a licence to field a Brisbane team in the expanding VFL competition.
1987 The Brisbane Bears, based at Carrara on the Gold Coast, played in the VFL competition for the first time.
1991 Under coach Norm Dare, Queensland defeated Victoria ‘B’ at the Gabba and the Brisbane Bears won the AFL Reserves Premiership with coach Mark Williams now at Port Adelaide.
1993 The Brisbane Bears relocated from the Gold Coast to the Gabba in Brisbane.
1996 On 4 July 1996 the Brisbane Bears merged with Fitzroy to form the Brisbane Lions effective from 1 November 1996.
2003 The Brisbane Lions completed an historic premiership hat-trick after the Queensland Team of the Century, headed by captain Michael Voss and vice-captain Jason Dunstall, was named on 16 June 2003. A list of 100 final nominations included 14 players from pre-World War Two, four from the 1940s (post-World War Two), 10 from the 1950s, 17 from the 1960s, 19 from the 1970s, 19 from the 1980s, 16 from the 1990s and one from the 2000s.
