Dogs chew up Lions at Gabba
Talk about a Dogs' breakfast.
Another controversy-plagued week ended in misery for the injury-ravaged Brisbane Lions as they were chewed up by a resurgent Western Bulldogs 22.13 (145) to 14.19 (103) at the Gabba.
After enduring another bout of Akermania, Brisbane needed a bit of luck to turn its ailing season around - unfortunately it was all bad.
The Lions lost matchwinning forward Jonathan Brown (hip), rugged fullback Mal Michael (ribs) and Josh Drummond (quad) before the first bounce.
Brisbane coach Leigh Matthews must have thought he was jinxed when Troy Selwood (concussion, neck) went down in the opening term and Ash McGrath (hamstring) in the fourth to blow his injury list out to a staggering 17 players.
The injury curse also struck the Western Bulldogs, losing their fifth player to a serious knee injury this season when Mitch Hahn went down midway through the second quarter after landing awkwardly contesting a mark.
But the brilliance of veterans Brad Johnson (six goals) and Chris Grant (four) ensured no further hiccups for the Bulldogs (8-4) as they raced to three straight wins to remain well on track for their first finals campaign since 2000.
In contrast it was the third consecutive loss for Brisbane (4-8) - hardly a fitting way to mark a memorable milestone for skipper Michael Voss.
The Lions captain overcame a virus to start the match on the bench, ensuring he played his 300th game to automatically earn AFL life membership.
The 300-game mark included premiership, pre-season and State of Origin matches.
To add to Lions coach Leigh Matthews' worries, Brad Scott was booked for wrestling in the third quarter.
Brisbane kicked the first two goals before the Johnson-inspired Bulldogs enjoyed its best opening term of the season to lead 7.4 (46) to 4.5 (29) at the first break.
The damage was 33 points by halftime - 13.7 (85) to 7.10 (52) - and 45 - 20.9 (129) to 12.12 (84) - at the final break in front of a largely shellshocked 27,745-strong Gabba crowd.
The Dogs medical staff feared the worst for Hahn who appeared to have damaged his anterior cruciate ligament.
Meanwhile, Selwood was being monitored after he was taken off in a medicab following two heavy head knocks in the first eight minutes of the match.
Brisbane's lead-up was marred by another Akermanis controversy.
His website posted a chat room response to a fan's email that claiming Matthews was a "....wit" who "can't coach".
Akermanis apologised to Matthews, saying his brother Rory posted the message, and promptly shut down the chat room.
Speculation is rife that Akermanis will play for a Victorian club before his Lions contract expires at the end of next season.
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