Lions hold on, beat Bulldogs in AFL trial

Mar 2, 2017 - 12:14 PM Brisbane have celebrated their first AFL win under the new regime of coach Chris Fagan and captain Dayne Beams, beating the Western Bulldogs by eight points.

The Lions withstood a second comeback from the under-strength Bulldogs on Thursday night at Etihad Stadium to win by eight points, 0.10.6 (66) to 1.6 13 (58).

It was a bad night for rookie-listed Bulldogs player Roarke Smith, who appeared to suffer another serious knee injury and was helped from the field late in the first term.

Smith played one senior game last year after returning from a knee reconstruction.

Dayne Zorko starred for the Lions with a game-high 34 possessions and Josh Dunkley was among the Bulldogs' best.

Only nine of the Bulldogs' historic premiership team from October played.

Premiership players Marcus Bontempelli, Matthew Boyd and Zayne Cordy, plus star recruit Travis Cloke, were left out of the final team after being named in the squad for the match.

By contrast, the Lions were nearly at full strength, with Allen Christensen and Josh Schache among the notable omissions.

Despite being only their second game of the pre-season, wins in Melbourne have become as rare as diamonds for the Lions and this is a confidence boost for the young squad.

Former GWS player Jake Barrett made the perfect start in his first game for the Lions, kicking a goal after a minute.

Two days after being named Brisbane's new captain, Beams also played his first game of the season and had an immediate impact.

He was high among their best at halftime, before spending much of the second half on the bench.

The Lions led by two goals at quarter-time, 23 points at the long break and then up to 35 points early in the third term.

Just as the Lions looked like they could seal the match, Matt Suckling kicked a supergoal for the Bulldogs.

That sparked a three-goal run for the 'Dogs - two of them to Lin Jong - and they closed the gap to 13 points at the last change.

After the Bulldogs drew to within four points, Tom Bell kicked a goal against the run of play midway through the quarter and that was the last major of the match.

Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge said the news looks grim for Smith.

"We'll be able to confirm it tomorrow, but our specialists think he's done his ACL (anterior cruciate ligament),"' Beveridge said.

He also confirmed that Smith had hurt his right knee - the defender needed a left knee reconstruction after a VFL injury late in the 2015 season.

"Obviously it's a lot of bad luck, but we'll support him and get him going again," Beveridge said.

"It's obviously hard to give him that message at the moment, but it's a bitter pill to swallow tonight."

After overcoming an injury plague to win last year's flag, the Bulldogs now have two players undergoing surgery because of pre-season injuries.

Premiership ruckman Jordan Roughead will miss the start of the season because of a hamstring operation.

Beveridge also confirmed on Thursday night that fellow ruckman Tom Campbell will most likely be sidelined for round one with an ankle injury.

That means round-one draft pick Tim English, who played his first game for the Bulldogs on Thursday night, is in line for his AFL debut in round one against Collingwood.

By contrast, Fagan was rapt with his team's spirited performance.

"The way we moved the ball, our pressure - very, very pleasing," he said.

"It's the way we want to play and we just have to learn to sustain it."

Source: AAP