Thumping ... Brisbane Lions put rivals Gold Coast Suns to the sword. Source: Dan Peled / AAP
Brisbane Lions have put their Queensland rivals, Gold Coast Suns, to the sword with a thumping 33-point win in the final game of their NAB Cup triple-header.
| 0.2.3 (15) | Q1 | 2.1.2 (26) |
| 0.3.6 (24) | Q2 | 2.6.3 (57) |
| Q3 | |
| Q4 | |
| Jared Brennan 1 | Todd Banfield 1 |
| Campbell Brown 1 | Aaron Cornelius 1 |
| Thomas Lynch 1 | Ryan Lester 1 |
| Stefan Martin 1 |
| Ashley McGrath 1 |
| Brent Moloney 1 |
| Elliot Yeo 1 |
| Dayne Zorko 1 |
Backing up from a win over Hawthorn, the Lions fell behind early but stormed home to win 2.6.3 (57) to 0.3.6 (24) at Metricon Stadium.
The Lions bucked the trend of teams playing two game in a row losing to join Collingwood and North Melbourne as the only undefeated teams in the pre-season competition.
| 0.0.3 (3) | Q1 | 0.1.3 (9) |
| 0.4.8 (32) | Q2 | 0.1.5 (11) |
| Q3 | |
| Q4 | |
| Dayne Zorko 2 | Luke Breust 1 |
| Todd Banfield 1 | |
| Jordan Lisle 1 | |
Coming off a break, the Suns started well and led early but weren't able to sustain it and they couldn't handle the slippery conditions as well as the bigger-bodied Lions.
Danyne Zorko was impressive through the midfield and kicked a nine-point super goal for the Lions while Aaron Cornelius showed some good signs playing forward and new recruit Brent Moloney kicked the other super goal.
Cornelius produced the highlight of the night when he took a spectacular high-flying mark against two Gold Coast defenders.
Playing without captain Gary Ablett, the Suns were best served by draftee Jesse Loneragan and enigmatic forward Jared Brennan was solid.
In the previous game with Lions smashed a sloppy Hawthorn outfit by 21 points, condemning last year's grand finallists to a second straight NAB Cup loss.
The Lions used the ball far better in slippery conditions at Metricon Stadium to finish 4.8 (32) to 1.5 (11).
Hawthorn were backing up after being upset by Gold Coast Suns in the opening game of the NAB Cup triple-header and, at times, looked lost under the Lions pressure.
There were few highlights but plenty of worries for coach Alastair Clarkson after Hawthorn crashed to back-to-back losses.
| 0.2.3 (15) | Q1 | 0.2.4 (16) |
| 0.4.6 (30) | Q2 | 0.4.5 (29) |
| Q3 | |
| Q4 | |
| Harley Bennell 2 | Luke Breust 1 |
| Jarrod Harbrow 1 | Sam Grimley 1 |
| Zac Smith 1 | Ryan Schoenmakers 1 |
| Derick Wanganeen 1 |
Clarkson may not want to sift through the game tape of either match and his team were particularly rusty against the Lions, who were without the likes of co-captains Jonathan Brown and Jed Adcock, Simon Black, Matthew Leuenberger and Brent Staker.
The Lions could only manage three behinds in the first half but stormed home, keeping the Hawks to just a single point in the second 20 minutes.
Patrick Karnezis looked impressive for the Lions running off half-back while fellow young gun Billy Longer did some positive things in the ruck and Dayne Zorko kicked two goals.
Goal sneak Luke Bruest kicked the only goal for the Hawks, who saw another solid performance from new faces Will Langford, Derrick Wanganeen and Sam Grimley.
In the night's opening game, the highlights reel was dominated by Lance Franklin - mostly for the wrong reasons - as the Gold Coast Suns snatched a one-point win over Hawthorn in their NAB Cup clash at Metricon Stadium on Saturday night.
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Utility Luke Russell was the hero for the Suns when his behind after the full-time siren sealed a dramatic 0.4.6 (30) to 0.4.5 (29) victory in the opening round robin clash at Carrara.
However, Franklin was the name on everyone's lips.
The Hawks superstar faces a nervous wait after collecting Suns midfielder Matt Shaw in the head in the second half.
"I didn't see it mate so I couldn't tell you,'' Clarkson said of the incident.
"He (Franklin) competed hard. He was a bit scratchy with the ball from time to time.
"It wasn't a game conducive to tall players. Both games were error-ridden. It was nearly like wet weather footy tonight.''
He had earlier made everyone sit up and take notice with some more subtle touches, including a sublime handball that set up a Sam Grimley goal in the second half and kept Hawthorn in touch with upstarts Gold Coast.
The Hawks led 0.2.4 (16) to 0.2.3 (15) at halftime.
Hawthorn - without the likes of captain Luke Hodge, Sam Mitchell and Brad Sewell on the Gold Coast - received another scare when Paul Puopolo was helped off the ground late in the clash with a suspected knee complaint.
The Suns were led by Ablett who backflipped and opted to take on Hawthorn rather than the Lions.
Suns coach Guy McKenna said before the match that Ablett was in "ripping nick'' and looked to at least match his 2012 form which had him in the mix for Brownlow Medal No.2.
And he lived up to the hype, leading the way with 13 touches while Russell had 10 disposals including the match-winning behind at the death.
For the Hawks, Matt Suckling was impressive with 13 touches while highlight machine Cyril Rioli had his moments in the first half.
Rising stars Jaeger O'Meara and Jack Martin also impressed for the Suns who will later take on arch rivals Brisbane on Saturday night.
Like O'Meara last year, 18-year-old Martin can't make his AFL debut until next season due to age restrictions but has been granted permission to take part in the NAB Cup.
