The Brisbane Lions will be out to deny the Kangaroos a first win of the season at Carrara on Saturday night, after Dean Laidley's side suffered a third straight loss to Hawthorn on Sunday.

The Kangaroos' maiden "home" game in Queensland already promised to be a must-see encounter. But it will have even more spice now that the Roos are winless and facing encounters with in-form Geelong and Sydney in rounds five and six.

Up against a Hawthorn side that has improved sharply since their round one capitulation to the Lions, the Kangaroos led throughout the first half but were no match for the Hawks in the second half, succumbing by 21 points.

Sunday's narrow loss to Sydney leaves the Lions in third spot on the table, with West Coast the only undefeated side after three rounds.

Once again, it was a weekend notable for amazing turnarounds, highlighted by Carlton's jaw-dropping back-from-the-dead performance against Essendon. Down eight goals in term two, the Blues eventually prevailed by three points in a great advertisement for AFL football. Collingwood wasn't quite as dramatic, but still came from 22 points in arrears at half time to account for Richmond by 25 points on Friday night.

Elsewhere, St Kilda were far too good for the Western Bulldogs, winning by 50 points, while Adelaide cast aside Port Adelaide by 24 points in the much-anticipated showdown. West Coast outplayed Fremantle in the western derby, emerging 31-point victors, with Geelong handing Melbourne a 52-point football lesson.

For performance of the round, it's difficult to go past Carlton's Brendan Fevola, who kicked eight goals in the Blues' stunning win. Andrew McLeod, who engineered Adelaide's showdown win over Port Adelaide, is another worthy contender, having been best-on-ground for perhaps the second week running, while St Kilda's Nick Riewoldt was brilliant in his first outing for the season against the Western Bulldogs.

Young guns continued to shine, with Alan Toovey and Brad Dick forging excellent debuts for Collingwood, St Kilda's Clinton Jones shining in the win over the Bulldogs and last week's star first-gamer, Tom Hawkins, avoiding the second-up blues and kicking four goals versus Melbourne.

Collingwood 17.13 (115) d Richmond 13.12 (90)

Collingwood staged another impressive comeback, improving its record to 2-1 with a 25-point win over Richmond on Friday night. After a miraculous come-from-behind win over the Kangaroos in round one, the Pies were at it again on the weekend, albeit in less dramatic fashion, turning a 22-point half-time deficit into a comfortable win. Anthony Rocca's three second-half goals were crucial, with new Pie Paul Medhurst kicking four for the match and debutants Alan Toovey and Brad Dick booting three and two respectively. The Tigers, who remain without a win, got three goals apiece from Matthew Richardson, Andrew Krakouer and Jay Schulz.

Carlton 18.17 (125) d Essendon 17.20 (122)

Carlton showed it will be a force to be reckoned with when it squares off against the Lions in round five, with an amazing three-point win over Essendon in front of more than 64,000 fans at MCG. The Blues trailed the in-form Bombers by as many as 48 points in the second term, but then staged one of the most dramatic turnarounds in recent footballing history. Not surprisingly, full-forward Brendan Fevola played a starring role in the triumph, kicking eight goals, including two in the decisive final term. Essendon's forward pairing of Matthew Lloyd and Scott Lucas combined for eight goals of their own and Mark McVeigh snared a candidate for mark of the year, but coach Kevin Sheedy was unable to hide his disappointment post-match.

St Kilda 17.14 (116) d Western Bulldogs 9.12 (66)

Southport product Nick Riewoldt made a brilliant return as St Kilda bounced back from its Easter Thursday loss to the Lions with a comprehensive 50-point win over the Western Bulldogs. Riewoldt, making his first appearance for 2007, marked everything in sight and booted four goals as Rodney Eade's side fell to consecutive losses and failed to cope with the Saints' trio of tall forwards - Riewoldt, Fraser Gehrig and Justin Koschitzke. The Dogs showed occasional glimpses of their free-running best but too often went wide and appeared over-reliant on gun small forward Brad Johnson. Neither side suffered any significant injuries, although a clash between Gehrig and Bulldogs full-back Brian Harris in the third quarter seems likely to be scrutinised.

Adelaide 13.9 (87) d Port Adelaide 8.15 (63)

Adelaide, the Lions' round seven opponents at the Gabba, notched a second consecutive victory with a characteristically solid 24-point showdown win over Port Adelaide. Surprised by Essendon in round seven, the Crows have been in fine form ever since – no one more so than Andrew McLeod. The dual Norm Smith medallist was the architect of Saturday's victory, just as he had been the week before against the Western Bulldogs, using his 30 possessions wisely in another brilliant display across half back. Adelaide's weight of numbers in the Port forward line caused all manner of problems for the Power, which kicked a wasteful 3.10 in the first half. Port Adelaide's day was made all the worse by an ankle injury to Dean Brogan, which is expected to sideline the ruckman for several weeks.

West Coast 14.17 (101) d Fremantle 11.4 (70)

The fortunes of WA's two teams now sit at opposite ends of the spectrum after three rounds, with reigning premier West Coast unbeaten and 2006 preliminary finalist Fremantle still chasing a first victory for the campaign. The Eagles were in charge of the contest from the outset and, although Fremantle hung tough for three quarters, West Coast put the result beyond doubt in the final term. Michael Braun received the Glendinning Medal as best afield in the derby, while Steven Armstrong kicked three goals in the 31-point win, which snapped a losing run against Fremantle dating back to 2005. Defender David Mundy was best for the Dockers, who struggled with their ball delivery and may face another appointment at the tribunal - courtesy of ex-Lion Des Headland's report for striking Adam Selwood. Fremantle, which travels to the Gabba for round six, will also sweat over Andrew Browne (hamstring).

Geelong 15.19 (109) d Melbourne 8.9 (57)

Highly-touted teenager Tom Hawkins starred with four goals as Geelong maintained Melbourne's miserable start to the season with a 52-point win at the MCG on Sunday afternoon. The Cats started well with a five-goal first term and were never headed, with Hawkins kicking all of his goals before half time and then being paid the compliment of a double-team for the second half of what was only his second game of AFL football. Jimmy Bartel was adjudged best afield for the Geelong, which won with a leg in the air, despite last week's hero five-goal Nathan Ablett pulling out after injuring a hamstring during the warm-up. Cameron Bruce was the best of a not-so-good bunch for the Demons, who face a tough few weeks in which to try and win their first game of the season. Neale Daniher's side face Fremantle, Sydney, Port Adelaide, the Western Bulldogs and West Coast over the next five rounds.

Hawthorn 13.13 (91) d Kangaroos 10.10 (70)

Sam Mitchell was best afield with 33 possessions and Mark Williams kicked four goals, including two important efforts from acute angles, as Hawthorn made it two wins on the trot with a 21-point win over the Kangaroos. It wasn't a happy twilight outing for Dean Laidley and the Roos, who led for most of the first half and now face the onerous task of travelling north to their second "home" of Carrara and entertaining the in-form Lions. The Kangaroos gave themselves every conventional opportunity by kicking long and high to the top of the goal square but were unable to capitalise on the strategy without injured star forward Nathan Thompson.