BRISBANE has to take the long route again to reach a fourth consecutive Grand Final while Adelaide has more demons to banish even after securing a breakthrough finals win. 

The Lions will need to play four finals to seal a premiership three-peat – just as they did in the past two years – after their shock loss to the undermanned Sydney in a qualifying final. Chris Fagan's side has shown in the past it can bounce back quickly even from the most demoralising defeats, including when beaten by Geelong at the same stage last year. Brisbane can also point to a competition-wide record of all 12 teams to lose a qualifying final by 50 points or more this century recovering to win the next week. 

The Crows silenced their critics and gave coach Matthew Nicks' hopes of staying in the role a huge boost as they fought off a late Western Bulldogs challenge to win their elimination final. The finals victory was the Crows' first since 2017 and washed away some of the pain of their straight-sets exit as minor premiers last year. But Adelaide has another hoodoo to snap this week after failing to beat Brisbane at the Gabba since 2018, and only winning two of their 10 meetings at any venue in that time, as it seeks to make a serious finals statement.

Brisbane might look to shake things up after a lacklustre performance in its loss to Sydney though defender Noah Answerth's ankle issue was the only new injury concern. Ty Gallop, Bruce Reville, Dan Annable, Keidean Coleman and Linc McCarthy are among those hoping for a call-up if the Lions turn to their enviable depth. Adelaide got through its elimination final unscathed but could recall Zac Taylor if he passes a fitness test after missing one match due to a hamstring strain.

Where and when: Gabba, Saturday September 12, 7.35pm AEST

WHAT HAPPENED THIS YEAR?

Round 7: Brisbane 19.13 (127) defeated Adelaide 11.9 (75) at the Gabba

Brisbane showed it remained among the premiership contenders as it delivered its first dominant display of the year in a rout of top-four hopeful Adelaide. The Lions ran rampant either side of half-time as they outmuscled the Crows at the contest and piled on 11 of the 12 goals to put the result beyond doubt. Zac Bailey had a day out with an equal career-high 29 disposals and three goals, Lachie Neale (42) had the ball on a string and Charlie Cameron booted four goals for the Lions. Crows captain Jordan Dawson stood tall on his return after dealing with personal tragedy to gather 28 disposals and two majors. But the Crows lacked enough contributors to compete as they dropped to 13th spot with a 3-4 record.

THE STATS THAT MATTER

Brisbane
The Lions are on familiar ground as they reach at least the semi-final stage for the eighth consecutive season. But alarm bells will be ringing for coach Fagan as the Lions conceded more than 20 goals for the third time in 14 matches in their qualifying final defeat, as the Swans had 69-52 inside-50s – the third time the reigning premiers have let in such a high number of forward entries this year. Perhaps of more concern for Brisbane is that its star-studded midfield was unable to contain Sydney at stoppage and it conceded 6.3 while only scoring 1.0 from centre ball-ups. 

Adelaide
The Crows have won only two of their seven matches against the six remaining teams this season. That includes a loss to the Lions that was also the Crows' heaviest defeat of the year though it must be noted that it came in the aftermath of the most emotional circumstances for captain Jordan Dawson. Adelaide's resurgence over the past two years has been powered by its defensive solidity, as the No.2 side for points against in both seasons. But like Brisbane it needs to limit supply to the opposition's forwards after finishing -12 for inside-50s even in its elimination final win. 

IT'S A BIG WEEK FOR ...

Brisbane
Zac Bailey hardly needed to audition in front of the Lions' semi-final opponents as he weighed up a lucrative offer from the Crows. But the back-to-back All-Australian can now give an early reminder of what they missed out on after he signed an eight-year deal to stay with the Lions. The reigning premiers went to great lengths to hang on to the 26-year-old who can have as much impact across the forward line as in the midfield and has booted 31 goals while averaging a career-high 21.7 disposals a game. Bailey was far from the Lions' worst in their qualifying final humbling. But with his side now thrown into do-or-die clashes for the rest of the season, he can start repaying the Lions' faith in him with a run of influential performances.

Adelaide
Josh Worrell has been a key to the Crows' defensive prowess over the past two seasons but outdid even himself with a record-breaking performance in the win against the Bulldogs. The 25-year-old finished with 34 disposals, 16 contested possessions, 10 marks and 497m gained as he regularly turned defence into attack. Worrell also gathered 19 intercepts for not only the most of any player in a game this year – but the most ever recorded in a final. While the 2025 All-Australian squad member cut off the Dogs' forward entries, Wayne Milera's 27 disposals at 100 per cent efficiency punished them on the rebound, and both will be critical to the Crows exploiting the Lions' weakness from turnovers this week.  

PREDICTION

The Lions showed all the signs of a side on the decline after a sustained period of success in their listless loss to the Swans. But the two-time reigning premiers have proven in the past they can have an off day and then immediately respond. The Crows have released some pressure after throwing the finals monkey off their back but with the worst record of the remaining sides against one another, the trip to the Gabba will be a step too far. Brisbane by 21 points.

FIVE minutes of scintillating, statement-making footy has kept Brisbane's three-peat hopes alive, blowing away Adelaide before some fans had even taken their seats. 

After a shock qualifying final loss to an undermanned Sydney last week, the Lions exploded out of the blocks, setting up the 53-point victory with the quickest of five-goal hauls.

LIONS v CROWS Full match coverage and stats

The 21.18 (144) to 13.13 (91) thumping means Brisbane will now face Hawthorn at the MCG in a preliminary final next weekend, while former Adelaide skipper Taylor Walker's decorated career has come to an end after 319 matches and 715 goals.

There'll be a watch on newly minted All-Australian forward Logan Morris, who finished the game on the bench with ice on his calf.

It took just 30 seconds for Brisbane to open its account, with Kai Lohmann roaring into life after a quiet few weeks, and then Charlie Cameron dribbled truly 20 seconds later, and it was the crowd's turn to roar to life.

Fresh off signing a mega-contract and turning his back on Adelaide's overtures, Zac Bailey rubbed salt into the wound with the team's third, and the Lions were officially flying.

Brisbane had recorded 10 inside 50s for 5.2 before Adelaide managed to make it to its own attacking arc. 

All of this happened in just five minutes.

The Crows were so unsettled in the opening term, Darcy Fogarty and Josh Rachele conceded two 50m penalties for not standing the mark correctly, and the former managed to turn his into a 100m for knocking the pesky Dayne Zorko to the ground, getting sucked into making contact to the wily veteran.

Luke Nankervis added a bright spot late after the nightmare opening term with a sharp flying mark and goal, but the Lions took a 27-point lead into the first break.

Adelaide's best work and ball movement came from half-back, using speed to its advantage to cut holes, and after just two touches in the first quarter, Rachele kickstarted his side in the second.

Fogarty made up for previous errors with back-to-back goals, and incredibly, the margin was back to 10.

Josh Dunkley and Lachie Neale had tag-teamed to shut down the dangerous and in-form Izak Rankine, and unsurprisingly, the Crows managed to work their way back into the match when he found a rare bit of room, but was quickly squashed again and rarely sighted for the rest of the game.

But the Lions – driven by a doubling in contested possessions in the second term – had just had far too many quick and firing options in attack for Adelaide to shut down, with Lohmann, Cam Rayner, Bailey and even Eric Hipwood causing havoc, while Cameron had 4.3 before the main break.

The Crows threw former Lion Cal Ah Chee behind the ball at the start of the third term, which stemmed the flow of goals somewhat, but the Lions just found even more inventive ways to score, including a stunning set shot snap from Morris, and Zorko celebrating hard after a major outside 50.

With his side trailing by an even 10 goals, Matthew Nicks moved down to coach from the bench for the final term, which saw Walker boot two bombs for old times' sake, and a very professional Darcy Wilmot spoiling the club champion's marking attempt for a third in the final seconds.

Sam Berry (31 disposals, six clearances) and Jordan Dawson (30, eight tackles) battled hard in the midfield for the Crows, while Will Ashcroft (30, six clearances) put in a strong four-quarter performance, and Dunkley's strength in the contest was key.

The perfect start
By the time Cam Rayner had kicked his side's fifth goal, the Lions had recorded just 26 disposals – five touches per major. It had taken seven minutes and 13 seconds, which is the fastest first five goals this century. Most importantly, the players who hit the scoreboard were among those who badly struggled last week, including Lohmann, Cameron, Bailey and winger Hugh McCluggage. The Lions had jumped out to a 32-point lead by the time Dan Curtain managed to stop the rot, kicking truly halfway through the quarter. 

Missing Crows
It was a dirty night to forget for a number of Adelaide players, barely sighted over the four quarters as the experienced finals campaigners flexed their muscle. Halfway through the fourth term, Josh Rachele was still stranded on five touches, as was Taylor Walker, while Ben Keays and Jake Soligo were flat while the game was in the balance. Wayne Milera's 19 disposals look respectable, but Conor McKenna muted his impact and drive, and Josh Worrell wasn't able to intercept nearly as effectively as last week.

BRISBANE     6.6     10.12     16.15     21.18     (144)
ADELAIDE         2.3     5.4     7.9     13.13     (91)

GOALS
Brisbane: Cameron 5, Bailey 3, Lohmann 2, Morris 2, Rayner 2, Hipwood 2, McCluggage 2, Zorko, McKenna, L. Ashcroft
Adelaide: Fogarty 2, Thilthorpe 2, Walker 2, Keays 2, Curtin, Nankervis, Rachele, Milera, Neal-Bullen

BEST
Brisbane: W.Ashcroft, Bailey, Zorko, Dunkley, Rayner, Cameron 
Adelaide: Dawson, Berry, Curtain, Hall-Kahan, Taylor

INJURIES
Brisbane: Morris (calf)
Adelaide: Nil

Crowd: 36,026 at the Gabba