Collingwood will face its first interstate trip for the season on Friday as they travel to Brisbane’s Brighton Homes Arena in Springfield for a crucial Round Two clash with the Lions.
It will be the second year in a row the two Clubs’ VFL sides have met on the Easter weekend, with the game following the AFL teams facing off in the traditional Easter Thursday game the night before.
Having triumphed by 28 points in last week’s opening game of the year against Sandringham, the Pies will be buoyed by the win as they face their second of four games on the road to start 2024.
Last time they met
It was a tough outing for the Pies when they took on Brisbane on Easter Thursday last year in Round Three, going down by 67 points.
The Pies were solid in the first half and matched the Lions around the contest to keep within reaching distance on the scoreboard, however the home side ramped up their scoring in quarters three and four to run out 11-goal winners.
Finlay Macrae and Campbell Lane were strong though the midfield that day with 28 and 23 disposals respectively, while Sam Glover kicked two goals.
The loss came after two victories to start the 2023 season, with the trip to Springfield this time last year a key learning for the side to take into this week’s game.
Team news
There’s only one change to the side for the game against the Lions, with Oleg Markov coming into the team in the place of John Noble.
Noble, who performed strongly in Round One where he collected 29 disposals, has been promoted to the senior squad.
Markov will play his first game at VFL level in 12 months and will be a key leader in defence, assuming Noble’s place on the half back flank from last week.
Harvey Harrison was named as an emergency for Thursday night’s AFL fixture between the two clubs after standing out with 20 disposals and a goal against Sandringham last Friday and will again be a key player in the forward line for Josh Fraser’s side.
The season so far
While there has only been one round so far in the 2024 VFL season, both teams started positively last week.
The Pies’ win was the Club’s first of 2024, while Brisbane travelled to face Essendon last week – defeating the Bombers by 37 points.
The Lions’ James Tunstill and Jaxon Prior were their major ball-winners, while they had nine different goal-kickers.
Brighton Homes Arena history
The Pies have played at Brisbane’s new training base twice since the venue officially opened late in the 2022, with one of those being last year’s Easter Thursday VFL clash with the Lions.
The other, however, was a fantastic win by the Club’s AFLW side in Round Six of the 2023 season.
Sitting at two wins and three losses for the season coming into the game, the Pies rallied to forge a late comeback and secure a brilliant five-point win on the road that galvanised the group.
Located 30km south of the Brisbane CBD, the Pies will be hoping to make it two in a row at the venue for the Club and go into the league wide VFL bye next week 2-0.
How can I watch?
Entry is free at Brighton Homes Arena for the Round Two clash, with the game kicking off at 11:05am local time.
The match will also be streamed live on AFL.com.au and the official AFL app.
Friday, March 29
Brisbane V Collingwood
Brighton Homes Arena, Yagara
11:05am (AEST)
