As it happened AFL 2021: Geelong wins a thriller as Lions rue missed free kick

I thought we played pretty well in the first half but kicked inaccurately. If you look back through the game, you will see opportunities that we had to score and we didn’t take them and we end up with four more shots than Geelong, so it wasn’t just at the end. It was at different phases through the game, I thought.

The COVID situation is a big talking point. Did that affect the team at all?

No, we didn’t talk about it. We just take our advice from the AFL and the Queensland government and do what we’re told, I don’t think it affected the way we played. I’m not sure if the players knew of it, but it certainly wasn’t a topic of conversation between myself and the players before the game.

Could you stay here for Thursday night?

We have not received any information from the AFL. As far as I know, we’re flying back tomorrow, but that could change, as we know, life changes pretty quickly these days. But I have no idea about that. We’ll just be ready to do whatever we have to do.

Was there a moment pre-game where you thought perhaps you weren’t going to be able to play tonight?

I wasn’t sure. I thought there was a chance it could be called off. I’m glad it wasn’t. It was one of the better games of Aussie Rules football you’ll ever see, but I thought that was a possibility, yes.

Isaac Smith kicks him at when in his second game for the club, you must be pretty pleased to have him.

“He and Shaun Higgins have been great additions. We have got some quality cattle on the sideline at the moment, so it’s important for us that the guys that are out there stand up. And they have really helped us.

“Every time we have brought new players in, it takes a while to build cohesion with the teammates.

“But they are smart players so they picked it up pretty quickly. And looking forward to getting them altogether.

Why did you put Mark O’Connor on Lachie Neale and give him the job for the game?

“Probably, because we hold Lachie Neale in such a regard, that would be the main reason. We thought for a while that mark has the capabilities of playing those roles for us.

“A week where we had a little bit of a thin midfield group, especially the inside, with Menegola going out, Dangerfield going out and Duncan not being available in one or two others as well and one or two others as well.

“I thought Mark was good and Charlie Constable as well.“

You are fired up at quarter time and had a discussion with the Lions players, can you elaborate on what led to that and what you said?

“I was walking onto the ground and Lachie Neale just said to me something, I couldn’t understand exactly what he said, but something about Gary Rohan. And I said I’m happy to have the conversation with you if you like, I have seen the vision, and I am comfortable with it.

“I suspect he didn’t hear all of that. That is all that was said. I think a few of the Brisbane players - they were not paying me compliments but I didn’t say anything after that.”

What was your opinion of the Gary Rohan and Neale incident?

I think Neale strikes Gary on the chest and then Gary struck him on the chest.

So Neale started it?

He did, the vision is clear, I am not certainly not saying he did the wrong thing, that’s footy, but I have had a pretty good look at what Gary did and I’m comfortable with it.

Chris Scott wasn’t shy last week saying he wasn’t overly pleased with the method and the way you are moving the ball forward in attack, did you see an improvement in that area?

Yes, it was really pleasing for most of the game. But we understand we are not going to get all the game on our terms, and in the last quarter we probably could have been better.

I spoke to a couple of the boys down on the ground about Evans. How exciting is it for the footy club to see such a young talent coming through?

It was good for him to hit is corporate. He has been bashing away and was emergency a number of times last year, so it was good for him to get his go tonight and I’m sure you will see him or during the year.

“We both came off terrible losses last week, so it was nice to get the win, but as you said, the Lions were coming and we had to find something in the end and were able to save it,” Smith said.

“You don’t want that every week. It was pretty awesome to be down here in front of the Geelong crowd, something new, a lot of fun.”