Karmichael Hunt of the Suns in action during the AFL Round 07 match between the Gold Coast Suns and the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba, Brisbane.
Tonight the Brisbane Lions will host the Gold Coast Suns at the Gabba for Q-Clash 2. Last time these teams met to play for the Q Cup, the Suns drew first blood, much to everyone’s surprise. Will Brisbane be able to exact their revenge?
Before the first Q-Clash back in Round Seven, after all the pre-match hype, I speculated here on The Roar whether there would be much to get excited about in a David versus David match-up.
Well, that game actually turned out to be a classic encounter.
An impressive 25,000 were at the Gabba to watch these two ‘tribes’ have at it in the state’s first derby (while across town on the same night, an NRL match drew another 35,000). The Suns emerged victors that night with a come-from-behind eight-point upset, and with that, a rivalry was forged.
Fourteen rounds later, and the situation is similar.
Both teams remain stuck at the bottom of the AFL ladder on 12 points apiece.
Both teams are coming off losses – the Suns losing spectacularly to Geelong, and Brisbane faltering in the last quarter against Adelaide.
And both teams have been exchanging words again.
The Lions vice-captain Tom Rockliff has declared that “it’s payback time” and says the club is treating the match like a grand final. Meanwhile, Suns senior player Michael Rischitelli has said his former Lions teammates did not respect Gold Coast when they last met.
So which team will hold up the Q Cup in Q-Clash 2.0?
Each side has a page-long injured list which has ruled out some of their top players. For the Suns the main omission is Campbell Brown, and for the Lions, his namesake Jonathan.
Brisbane also go without Daniel Rich, Joel Patfull and they continue to play without their tall defender Daniel Merrett. Josh Drummond and Matt McGuire have been recalled for the Lions while the Suns will welcome back Gary Ablett from a hamstring injury, but are yet to bring back their league convert, Karmichael Hunt.
Last time Gold Coast were at unlikely $7.00 odds, but having shown rapid improvement in the last few appearances (bar their Geelong capitulation) the Suns are at $3.00 this time around.
However, Brisbane remain the favourites at $1.37.
The Lions do carry more momentum going into the match. To be fair, they’ve put in some very good performances this year. Patrick Karnezis, Ashley McGrath and Mitch Clarke are all in form at the front while Brown has been absent. But the Lions have been far from solid all season, lacking the ability to finish strongly.
At the last Q-Clash they were yet to post a win. They may have won a couple since, but the problem that plagued them then has continued. Much to the frustration of their supporters, the Lions have come painstakingly close to some well-deserved success time and time again, only to lose in a late collapse.
Not to be ruled out when on song, the Suns have proven they can keep up with the best of them in the AFL. The problem is, when they are off, well, they are way off.
With plenty of talent on hand, winning the clearances combined with a bit of patience in the forward 50 will be the key for Gold Coast dismantling Brisbane.
I expect this one to be a tight game.
These teams have shown how much the Q-Clash means to them. Brisbane should command proceedings for most of the match, but the Suns will keep coming at them.
The deciding factor will be whether or not Brisbane can close out a game for once. If they keep the foot on the pedal, they’ll run out easy winners. But if they don’t – beware of the rising Suns.
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