Lions Loose Cannon Gives Swans A Leg-up Troubled Aker Goes Crackers
Newcastle Herald
Monday May 8, 2006
FIREWORKS were expected in the AFL "rivalry round" but it was a brain explosion from Brisbane Lions midfielder Jason Akermanis that proved the turning point in Sydney's 15.12 (102) to 10.10 (70) victory at the Gabba yesterday.
Akermanis, who has been in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons after lacklustre form and off-field criticism of his coach Leigh Matthews, tried to rise to the occasion but let his frustration with Sydney tagger Jared Crouch boil over in the third quarter. Akermanis gave away two costly free kicks in as many minutes and was reported for striking after manhandling Crouch behind play, which gifted Sydney a 33-point lead at the final break. Sydney (3-3) didn't look back as the Lions (1-5) dropped their fourth straight game and remained firmly on the bottom of the AFL ladder. Matthews admitted a "lack of discipline" cost his side and hinted that senior players may be dropped next week but refused to point the finger at Akermanis. While Akermanis faces the very real threat of spending next week in the reserves, teammate Chris Johnson is in danger of missing out on a game completely after being reported in the third minute of his 250th match for striking Tadhg Kennelly. "You saw it, I am an observer of the game like you are," Matthews said of Akermanis's costly penalties. "They got a couple of goals from off the ball stuff that's avoidable. "(But) we got beaten by five goals. You could say nothing cost us the win. A lot of things help you and a lot of things harm you in different things that are done out there." Brisbane trailed by 26 points at half-time but looked to be launching a comeback when two straight goals cut the deficit to just 13 early in the third. Then Akermanis detonated. After Luke Ablett goaled for Sydney, Akermanis pushed Crouch in the back off the ball and the Swan grabbed another major with the resulting free kick in the 28th minute. One minute later Akermanis was booked for striking Crouch behind play, leading to a Sean Dempster goal for Sydney. Matthews dragged Akermanis immediately as Sydney took an unassailable lead. "We don't look much of a team do we? It's a long way back to make anything of the season," Matthews said. "You stick with reputations for a while even if the performances aren't quite doing it, but ultimately you have to pick the side on what you think they can do this week." Swans coach Paul Roos didn't want to buy into the Akermanis penalties but admitted the two goals that resulted "didn't hurt". "I would suggest Leigh would dwell on it a bit more than we do," he said. Despite Brisbane slumping to its eighth loss in nine games since round 20 last year, Roos still saw glimpses of the old Lions today. "I think everyone has been a bit critical of Brisbane. They are developing," he said. Meanwhile, Collingwood surged to the top of the AFL ladder with impressive firepower and five straight wins, but they will find out on Saturday whether they deserve their lofty status. That is when they will venture to Subiaco to meet West Coast, who were on top before the weekend and who will provide the biggest test of the Magpies' credentials since they lost to Adelaide in round one.In a season notable for the high number of close contests, Collingwood have made a habit of belting their opposition by an average winning margin of almost 50 points. In all five of their wins they have booted 100-plus scores, to be the league's highest-scoring side, regularly blowing opponents away in the second half, as they did in yesterday's 72-point win over Carlton at the MCG. While that record is impressive, none of their defeated opponents Hawthorn, the Kangaroos, Essendon, Port Adelaide and the Blues are expected to be major players come finals time.Adelaide sit second on the ladder and West Coast third. Both trail the Magpies on percentage. The Kangaroos eased the pressure on themselves and coach Dean Laidley with a fighting 22-point victory over in-form Hawthorn. Full-forward Nathan Thompson kicked eight goals in a matchwinning performance, a superb response to the flood of criticism he attracted for taking himself from the ground in last weekend's narrow loss to Melbourne. In other results on the weekend, Fremantle demonstrated they may provide a more substantial threat than in previous seasons, following up last weekend's drawn-out win over St Kilda with a thrilling victory over local rivals West Coast. Adelaide continued their recent dominance over Port Adelaide with a big win.Melbourne beat Geelong on Friday night, Richmond scraped home against Essendon on Saturday night and St Kilda defeated the Western Bulldogs on Saturday. AAF
© 2006 Newcastle Herald