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14 September 2003 Sunday Herald Sun
By SELINA STEELE
A RESURGENT midfield, an eight-day break and a fired up Alastair Lynch are the keys for Brisbane to upset the Sydney Swans in their preliminary final clash at Telstra Dome on Saturday night.
For the first time this year, Brisbane will be rated as underdogs against a refreshed Swans outfit who will have had the luxury of a week off.
In a do-or-die game, Brisbane coach Leigh Matthews is banking on his rejuvenated midfield ? led by Jason Akermanis and Nigel Lappin ? to help catapult his side into their third successive Grand Final.
After thumping Adelaide by 42 points at the Gabba on Friday night, Matthews praised the return to form of his key midfielders Lappin and Akermanis.
With captain Michael Voss restricted to pinch-hitting from the bench, Lappin and Akermanis stepped up to register 29 and 18 touches respectively against the Crows.
The pair were also among the goals, with Lappin kicking his eighth goal for the year and Akermanis kicking his 22nd and 23rd.
Matthews said: "Jason (Akermanis) and Nigel (Lappin) are in peak condition; they're playing the best they have all year. Both are running strongly and now kicking the ball with confidence."
But Matthews is also wary of Sydney's deadly accuracy in front of goal.
To counter this, the Lions will need to choke supply to spearhead Barry Head who is in good form after his six goals in the Swans first qualifying final.
At the other end, veteran Alastair Lynch will need to kick a bag of goals for his Lions' teammates.
Lynch kicked 16 goals in last year's finals series ? a club record ? and after kicking six against the Crows on Friday night, has again proven himself to be a big match performer.
In the ruck, Brisbane's Clark Keating and Jamie Charman will go head-to-head with the competition's most agile ruckman Adam Goodes, while Simon Black will need to shake off Swans' tagger Brett Kirk.
Sydney coach Paul Roos has also not given up hope that star forward Michael O'Loughlin will be fit.
O'Loughlin injured his hamstring in the Swans final game of the home-and-away season against Melbourne, but with the benefit of a week off, O'Loughlin is now a realistic chance of playing.
But Brisbane will go into Saturday's game high on confidence.
Not only is it displaying the form that has taken it to back-to-back titles but Brisbane's eight-day break may be enough time for Chris Scott (groin), Aaron Shattock (knee) and Marcus Ashcroft (knee) to overcome their injuries.
Matthews said: "We've now got some time to get our players right.
"But Sydney have a good core of players that have played very well for them this year.
"While people talk about their All-Australians Paul Williams, Adam Goodes and their big guys like Barry Hall, it's guys like Nic Fosdike and Daryn Cresswell who have really stepped up.
Brisbane will also be boosted with the return of Tim Notting for Saturday's game, the utility has served out his one-match suspension for charging and will provide fresh legs for Sydney.
The Lions will need to be at their best to upset the Swans who have upset the reigning premier both times they have played this season.
Sydney stunned the Lions with a 19-point win in Round 7 at the SCG and repeated the result in Round 20 when they beat Brisbane by 14 points at the Gabba.
Matthews said: "Their accuracy has been a hallmark of their game.
"They've been incredibly accurate in front of goal ? the key for us is to stem their scoring shots from within kicking range.
"But all four teams are on the same footing next weekend.
"We're all facing knock-out games. We played at Telstra Stadium during the pre-season and it's a good venue."
"On Saturday night, two northern state teams will be having a crack at each other with one team to go through to the Grand Final ? it will be a great night for sport."
14 September 2003 Sunday Herald Sun
By SELINA STEELE
A RESURGENT midfield, an eight-day break and a fired up Alastair Lynch are the keys for Brisbane to upset the Sydney Swans in their preliminary final clash at Telstra Dome on Saturday night.
For the first time this year, Brisbane will be rated as underdogs against a refreshed Swans outfit who will have had the luxury of a week off.
In a do-or-die game, Brisbane coach Leigh Matthews is banking on his rejuvenated midfield ? led by Jason Akermanis and Nigel Lappin ? to help catapult his side into their third successive Grand Final.
After thumping Adelaide by 42 points at the Gabba on Friday night, Matthews praised the return to form of his key midfielders Lappin and Akermanis.
With captain Michael Voss restricted to pinch-hitting from the bench, Lappin and Akermanis stepped up to register 29 and 18 touches respectively against the Crows.
The pair were also among the goals, with Lappin kicking his eighth goal for the year and Akermanis kicking his 22nd and 23rd.
Matthews said: "Jason (Akermanis) and Nigel (Lappin) are in peak condition; they're playing the best they have all year. Both are running strongly and now kicking the ball with confidence."
But Matthews is also wary of Sydney's deadly accuracy in front of goal.
To counter this, the Lions will need to choke supply to spearhead Barry Head who is in good form after his six goals in the Swans first qualifying final.
At the other end, veteran Alastair Lynch will need to kick a bag of goals for his Lions' teammates.
Lynch kicked 16 goals in last year's finals series ? a club record ? and after kicking six against the Crows on Friday night, has again proven himself to be a big match performer.
In the ruck, Brisbane's Clark Keating and Jamie Charman will go head-to-head with the competition's most agile ruckman Adam Goodes, while Simon Black will need to shake off Swans' tagger Brett Kirk.
Sydney coach Paul Roos has also not given up hope that star forward Michael O'Loughlin will be fit.
O'Loughlin injured his hamstring in the Swans final game of the home-and-away season against Melbourne, but with the benefit of a week off, O'Loughlin is now a realistic chance of playing.
But Brisbane will go into Saturday's game high on confidence.
Not only is it displaying the form that has taken it to back-to-back titles but Brisbane's eight-day break may be enough time for Chris Scott (groin), Aaron Shattock (knee) and Marcus Ashcroft (knee) to overcome their injuries.
Matthews said: "We've now got some time to get our players right.
"But Sydney have a good core of players that have played very well for them this year.
"While people talk about their All-Australians Paul Williams, Adam Goodes and their big guys like Barry Hall, it's guys like Nic Fosdike and Daryn Cresswell who have really stepped up.
Brisbane will also be boosted with the return of Tim Notting for Saturday's game, the utility has served out his one-match suspension for charging and will provide fresh legs for Sydney.
The Lions will need to be at their best to upset the Swans who have upset the reigning premier both times they have played this season.
Sydney stunned the Lions with a 19-point win in Round 7 at the SCG and repeated the result in Round 20 when they beat Brisbane by 14 points at the Gabba.
Matthews said: "Their accuracy has been a hallmark of their game.
"They've been incredibly accurate in front of goal ? the key for us is to stem their scoring shots from within kicking range.
"But all four teams are on the same footing next weekend.
"We're all facing knock-out games. We played at Telstra Stadium during the pre-season and it's a good venue."
"On Saturday night, two northern state teams will be having a crack at each other with one team to go through to the Grand Final ? it will be a great night for sport."
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