BRISBANE made a statement on Sunday to beat Euro-Yroke by 27 points to reach the final, putting pressure on Hawthorn for second place and the McClelland Cup race.

This was a statement game from the reigning premiership, with the 10.8 (68) to 6.5 (41) scoreline on the RSEA Park deck largely driven by short but devastating bursts of attack.

SAINTS and LIONS Full match coverage and statistics

But a late shoulder injury to key midfielder Sophie Conway spoiled the win. The 2023 All-Australian landed heavily on his right shoulder late in the match and hit the ground without assistance from the field.

A typical winger, Conway (27 disposals, two goals) operated largely in midfield in the match, forming a nice duo with the energizing Belle Dawes (20 disposals, nine tackles); Belle Dawes often won the hard ball and distributed it into a perfectly positioned position. Conway is on the move outside of the fray.

Ahead of their eighth finals series in nine seasons and their first visit to RSEA Park since last year’s shock loss, Brisbane were determined to come out and make a statement. The Saints dazzled in the first quarter, posting their highest second-quarter opening score ever through 90 games.

The shifting wind created an advantage towards the South Road end of the pitch, which aided the Lions’ initial flurry and then extended the lead on the scoreboard, contributing to the team’s devastating six-goal third term.

Brisbane momentarily sat second in the standings throughout the match and challenged Hawthorn to regain home advantage in the finals, but the Hawks need to win at Richmond on Sunday to finish second and claim the McClelland Cup. $1 million prize.

It was intense, but the Saints were just as physical, as heavy hitting proved the story of the first half.

However, the Lions did not back down against this pressure, but still established a decent handball game.

Nick Dal Santo chose to prepare for the future throughout the match. Rather than locking in on direct competitors and forcing a dour, hard-to-watch spectacle, he opted to send youngsters to compete. J’Noemi Anderson (11 disposals, four disposals) and Charlotte Simpson (12 disposals) played as pure midfielders in the match and went head-to-head with the Lions’ star group.

Paige Trudgeon (five tackles, one goal) provided Lions star Dakota Davidson (11 disposals, one goal) with a tough one-on-one encounter, while at the other end of the pitch Jesse Wardlaw (19 disposals, two goals) scored Jennifer Dunne. (six tackles, 14 disposals).

leading goalkeeper
After Geelong’s Aishling Moloney kicked six goals past Brisbane’s Taylor Smith at the top of the standings in week nine, the pressure eased on the Lions to reclaim the title they have held for most of the season. It didn’t take long for Smith to respond with two goals in the first quarter, matching Moloney’s 21 goals on the season. The dead-end mark appeared to give hope that Smith would get the chance to take the lead directly after the siren, but the referees did not allow this and he was ultimately awarded a joint AFLW leading goalkicker award for the second season running.

Trudgeon and Davidson subplot
Euro-Yroke’s underrated member Paige Trudgeon was cast as Brisbane frontrunner Dakota Davidson, giving the play an entertaining subplot. Davidson pushed forward aggressively, scoring the first-quarter goal and looking ominous, but Trudgeon returned a few punches of his own. There was some byplay on a free kick from the wing where Davidson caught it high, eventually resulting in a 50 meter penalty to Saint. From the front arc Trudgeon coolly and quickly returned to score her first AFLW goal.

a retired pioneer
At the conclusion of the game, opening AFLW player Steph Chiocci was chaired off from the ground and retired. Although he is unable to start this year due to an ACL injury, his impact on the AFLW cannot be diminished. Chiocci, Collingwood’s first ever captain, who led the club in its AFLW debut in 2017, has played 61 games for both the Pies and Euro-Yroke, joining the latter ahead of the 2023 NAB AFLW season.

next
With Euro-Yroke’s season done and dusted, the focus now shifts to the upcoming player movement period, while Brisbane will set its sights on next week’s qualifying final with fixtures to be announced later on Sunday.

EUROPE-YROKE 1.0 2.1 3.3 6.5 (41)
BRISBANE 4.5 4.7 10.8 10.8 (68)

GOALS
Euro-Yroke: Wardlaw 2, Trudgeon, Stuart, Richards, Exon
Brisbane: Smith 2, Conway 2, R.Svarc, C.Svarc, Long, Hartill, Davidson, Anderson

THE BEST
Euro-Yroke: Lambert, Guttridge, Trudgeon, Smith, Wardlaw
Brisbane: Dawes, O’Dwyer, Koenen, Conway, Anderson, C.Svarc

INJURIES
Euro-Yroke: None
Brisbane: Conway (right shoulder)

Reports: None

Busy: TBC at RSEA Park