GWS Giants unleash spirit of 2016 as bereft Brisbane hit the skids… again

A record third quarter at Engie Stadium was akin to a flawless training session for the Giants while the signs are there that all is not well at the Lions

Few AFL coaches go the full Krakatoa quite like Adam Kingsley. The Giants uploaded footage of him going off his rocker at the main break of the Sydney derby last year, a game where they’d been largely uncompetitive in the opening half. Sunday’s first half against Brisbane didn’t warrant that kind of outburst. They’d been playing well against the reigning premiers, a team that always seems to bring out the best in them. But they need a follow up documentary on what was said at half-time, or what changed. They unleashed the kind of artillery barrage we rarely see in the modern game, and the kind we never see against the team that has won the past two premierships.

Their semi-final clash in 2024 was one of the more remarkable games of the modern era. This one didn’t have any of the wild swings, just half an hour of one-way, downhill, all-out attack, like one of those country footy games where a bunch of former AFL players feast on a team of 45-year-old farmers. With very little resistance, they strolled into goal in the first 20 seconds. They then unleashed the kind of football we saw from the Giants in 2016 and 2017 – long, sweeping waves emanating from half back. It resembled a flawless training session.