CARLTON has given the Sydney Swans a lifeline and kept its own faint finals hopes alive, staging a remarkable comeback to beat the Lions at the Gabba on Saturday night.
The Blues appeared gone at three-quarter time, after the Lions piled on nine goals to one to turn an 18-point half-time deficit into a 32-point lead at the final change.
But Leigh Matthews’ side stopped and Carlton surged in the last quarter, kicking six unanswered goals to seize the lead with 10 minutes to play.
The Lions managed just a solitary behind as both sides fought desperately in the final minutes, and young defender Joe Anderson took a superb relieving mark as the Blues hung on to win by six points, 18.7 (115) to 16.13 (109).
The Blues’ win guarantees the Swans a finals spot, despite their heavy defeat by Collingwood at Telstra Dome on Saturday night.
If the Lions had held on, their equation would have been simple – beat the Swans in round 22 and play finals for the first time since 2004.
Instead they must now travel to Sydney and beat the Swans and rely on other results falling their way.
St Kilda can close the door on the eight by beating either Adelaide on Sunday or Essendon next week.
Carlton’s victory owed much to the Blues’ never-say-die attitude and reflected an amazing second half in which both sides firmly held the ascendancy at different times.
The Lions, with Jared Brennan, Simon Black and Jonathan Brown all in fine touch, completely controlled the third term, kicking nine goals to one to take what looked to be a match-winning break in the last quarter.
But the dominance around the stoppages that was so impressive in the third quarter dissipated in the last, as the Blues racked up 115 disposals to 56 and stormed home to win by kicking the game’s last six goals.
The Lions could manage only a single point in the final stanza, while Nick Stevens, Chris Judd and Marc Murphy were red hot in the midfield for the visitors.
A superb last-gasp mark by Anderson thwarted the Lions’ last opportunity to take something from the match - the Carlton youngster throwing himself into the path of the leading Brown.
The Blues had traveled to the Gabba a much improved side to the one which lost by more than 100 points in the corresponding fixture last year.
And Brett Ratten’s side certainly showed as much in the early going, with a seven-goal first term that provided a 22-point quarter-time lead.
Although Brendan Fevola had seven possessions in the opening 30 minutes, Carlton’s early goal-kicking burst came from some unlikely sources – Ryan Houlihan booting three term one majors in his first game since round three and Cameron Cloke dominant in the ruck and up forward.
With Lions big man Jamie Charman forced from the ground with a head wound, Cloke did a passable impression of his younger brother and Collingwood star Travis, kicking two goals for the quarter and taking a bona fide screamer.
The Lions hit back early in the second term with consecutive goals to co-captains Brown and Luke Power, but the Blues found answers of their own and the lead was still at 18 points at half time.
The Lions’ brilliant third quarter cancelled that out and then some. Spearheads Daniel Bradshaw and Brown led the carnage as the Lions turned a three-goal deficit into a five-goal lead.
Bradshaw kicked four goals for the quarter and six for the game, while Brown took a couple of strong chest marks, kicking two of his four goals in the term.
However Carlton produced an even more astonishing rally to put the season-high Gabba crowd of 34,327 on tenterhooks.
The Lions were best served by Brennan, Bradd Dalziell, Black and Daniel Bradshaw (six goals), while Stevens, Murphy, Judd and Cloke were massive contributors for the Blues.
Brisbane Lions 3.4 7.9 16.12 16.13 (109)
Carlton 7.2 11.3 12.4 18.7 (115)
GOALS
Brisbane Lions: Bradshaw 6, Brown 4, Corrie 2, Power 2, Hooper, Rischitelli
Carlton: Cloke 4, Fisher 3, Houlihan 3, Fevola 2, Murphy 2, Waite 2, Stevens, Walker
BEST
Brisbane Lions: Brennan, Black, Dalziell, Brown, Bradshaw
Carlton: Stevens, Judd, Cloke, Murphy, Houlihan
INJURIES
Brisbane Lions: Adcock (head), Charman (head)
Carlton: None
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Stewart, Meredith, Ryan
Official crowd: 34,327 at the Gabba
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the club.
