Updated ,first published
In today’s AFL Briefing, your daily wrap of footy news:
- GWS’s tsunami-style third quarter swamped the Brisbane Lions
- Carlton have been dealt a massive blow with promising youngster Matt Carroll rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament
Records tumble as Lions cop one-quarter GWS blitz
A record-breaking 14-goal third-quarter blitz has powered GWS to an extraordinary 78-point win over two-time defending AFL premiers Brisbane.
The Giants held a six-point lead at halftime, but their tsunami style swamped Brisbane in the third quarter, outscoring the Lions 14.2 to 0.3 on their way to a 26.10 (166) to 13.10 (88) win at Engie Stadium on Sunday.
The onslaught eclipsed the 13.4 Essendon kicked in the third term against Footscray in 1982, and was the fourth-highest scoring quarter in VFL/AFL history.
They also registered their biggest ever score, going past the 162 points they posted against Essendon in 2023.
Captain Toby Greene kicked five goals, four of them in the third quarter, and Jake Stringer pitched in with a handful of his own. Max Gruzewski and Aaron Cadman scored three each.
Brisbane kicked the first four goals of the final quarter, but GWS booted the next three.
Making the Giants’ feat even more remarkable was the fact that their injury woes continued to mount.
They suffered a blow before the match when veteran Lachie Whitfield was ruled out with hamstring awareness and was replaced by Harry Oliver.
AAP, more to come
Promising young Blue suffers ruptured ACL
Andrew Wu
Carlton have been dealt a massive blow with promising youngster Matt Carroll rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament in the Blues’ victory over Port Adelaide.
The Blues confirmed the news on Sunday, putting a dampener on their 34-point win over the Power the night before in Adelaide.
The injury comes a week after Carroll’s career-best game against the Western Bulldogs, where he booted three goals from the wing in his 27th match.
Carroll’s left knee buckled while chasing a loose ball early in the first quarter. He immediately grabbed the back of his knee then hobbled to the bench on the other side of the ground.
Carroll is the second Blue to suffer an ACL injury after small forward Jesse Motlop, who was injured in the preseason, while developing defender Harry O’Farrell is on the recovery trail from one suffered late last year. Gun youngster Jagga Smith also underwent a knee reconstruction last year.
Carroll, 20, will be placed on the Blues’ inactive list, giving the club a pick in the upcoming mid-season draft.
“Matt had been in excellent form this season and was coming off a strong performance the week prior, so clearly this is a disappointing setback for him,” Carlton football boss Chris Davies said.
“While we’re all disappointed for Matt, we know how resilient he is, which will serve him well throughout his recovery.
“Our priority will be supporting Matt, with the club and its medical team guiding him through every stage of his rehabilitation.”
Carroll’s injury creates an opening for veteran Blake Acres to return to the senior team this week for his first game of the season. Acres, who has been in excellent form in the seconds, was pulled out of the Blues’ VFL match on Sunday.
More to come
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