ST KILDA have kicked the last three goals against GWS for the first draw of the AFL season.

Jake Carlisle could not take a mark for the Saints with seconds left on Saturday at Etihad Stadium.

GWS co-captain Phil Davis was able to spoil Carlisle and that left the Saints on 10.13 (73) to the Giants’ 9.19 (73).

Saints fans were ropeable that Carlisle was not paid a free kick, but he was disappointed in himself for not taking the grab.

“I just feel like I should have marked it,” Carlisle told Fox Footy.

It was a scrappy game under the Etihad Stadium roof until the last 10 minutes, when the Saints roared home thanks to goals from Maverick Weller, Ben Long and Paddy McCartin.

Jade Gresham kicked a behind with two minutes left to tie the scores.

The ball was then locked in the Giants’ forward line, but the Saints were able to burst clear and Carlisle almost marked Jack Stevens’ pass.

Only 14,956 fans were at the game, after three disappointing St Kilda losses.

But the Saints’ fans saw a much more-determined effort and a more-polished team would have beaten the Giants.

St Kilda won the tackle count 76-63 and had 76 inside 50s to 63, but they struggled in attack despite McCartin’s encouraging three-goal haul.

It is the first time the No.1 draft pick has kicked three goals in a match.

The Saints lost Jack Newnes with concussion in the first term. GWS ruckman Dawson Simpson will be under video scrutiny for their clash that put the Saints’ wingman out of the game.

The Giants led by five points at the first change, but two goals from McCartin put St Kilda ahead.

Luke Dunstan’s stunning left-foot goal from the boundary – Lance Franklin would have been proud of it – gave the Saints a 10-point lead 19 minutes in the second term.

The Giants regained the lead thanks to Brett Deledio’s quality snap early in the third quarter.

There were few highlights in the third term, but goals to Toby Greene and Dylan Shiel gave GWS a nine-point lead at the last change.

When Jonathon Patton goaled early in the last quarter, the Giants had a 15-point break and the game was as good as over.

After three more Giants behinds, the Saints made their unlikely late charge to almost snatch the win.

Steven and Deledio starred with 29 disposals apiece.

© AAP 2018

ST KILDA 2.2 5.8 6.12 10.13 (73)

GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY 2.5 4.9 7.15 9.19 (73)

Goals: St Kilda: P McCartin 3 B Long H Clark J Billings J Gresham J Steven L Dunstan M Weller. Greater Western Sydney: B Deledio 2 J Cameron 2 R Griffen 2 D Shiel J Patton T Greene.

Best: St Kilda: J Steven T Hickey S Ross S Savage P McCartin. Greater Western Sydney: B Deledio D Shiel J Cameron S Coniglio P Davis.

Umpires: Shane McInerney, David Harris, Brent Wallace.

Venue: Etihad Stadium.

AN undermanned Adelaide have held off a late Sydney Swans charge to seize an enthralling 10-point AFL win.

A much-improved Crows outfit shook off the absence of their injured masses and lifted under immense pressure at the SCG to squeeze and suffocate the Swans throughout a commanding first half on Friday night.

Though they appeared to prematurely release their grip when the hosts suddenly lifted for an utterly dominant third quarter, Lance Franklin’s early fourth- quarter miss allowed under-fire skipper Taylor Walker to lead his side to a 12.13 (85) to 10.15 (75) victory.
Adelaide’s sharp display drew a line under their sluggish start to the campaign and last week’s shock home loss to Collingwood.

​The Swans were unable to hold their nerve in the same manner as last weekend’s escape against the depleted Western Bulldogs.
Sydney tried to pick their moments but wasted a number of critical chances in the final quarter, while key players Luke Parker, Josh Kennedy and Dan Hannebery found themselves starved of the ball.
The reliance on Franklin didn’t help and the star forward was swarmed at nearly every touch.
His only goal did add to his extensive highlights reel when he pounced on a second-term turnover from prolific ball-winner Rory Laird and launched a kick from about 70m that took a bounce and continued through the main posts.

​Moments later Walker responded in kind, unloading from long range as part of a four-goal performance to silence the critics who’ve circled this week.
By halftime his team should have engineered a buffer far more handy than 16 points, as another sloppy mistake allowed Kieren Jack to goal with 16 seconds on the clock.

​It spurred the Swans to life, and snaps by Harry Cunningham and the returned Gary Rohan closed the gap to four points in the third quarter.

The Crows led by nine-points going into the final quarter and extended their lead before Franklin missed a set shot and Isaac Heeney spurned another couple of shots at goal.
Rohan and George Hewett ensured Sydney weren’t dead but they needed late goals and when a score review went against them the boilover was sealed.

© AAP 2018

ADELAIDE 4.9 8.10 9.12 12.13 (85)
SYDNEY 3.3 6.6 8.9 10.15 (75)

Goals: Adelaide: T Walker 4 J Jenkins 3 R Atkins 3 J Gallucci P Seedsman. Sydney: G Rohan 2 D Towers G Hewett H Cunningham I Heeney K Jack L Franklin O Florent Z Jones.

Umpires: Chris Donlon, Simon Meredith, Leigh Haussen.
Venue: SCG.

Lance Franklin left it late to have a scoreboard impact, but had the final and decisive say as Sydney beat Greater Western Sydney by 16 points in their AFL derby at the SCG.

Both sides enjoyed periods of momentum in a scrappy game before Sydney finally broke it open in the second half, kicking seven-straight goals either side of the last break to set up a 16.7 (103) to 12.15 (87) win.

In one final shift, GWS slashed a 33-point deficit to 10 with four-consecutive goals, before Franklin soothed the nerves of Swans supporters and ended the Giants’ charge.

The previously scoreless forward settled the issue with a booming kick of almost 60 metres.

Will Hayward goaled again soon after and Franklin closed the show with a second major to add to his 22 possessions and 10 marks.

Callum Sinclair kicked three goals for Sydney, while Franklin, Hayward, Tom Papley, Gary Rohan and Sam Reid all finished with two.

Sydney’s Callum Mills won the Brett Kirk Medal for best on ground, tallying 26 possessions. For the Giants, Nick Haynes finished with 28 and Stephen Coniglio 27.

The result leaves both sides with a 2-1 record and the Giants have still to win their first three matches of a season.

GWS enjoyed a 47-33 advantage in clearances, but were often guilty of poor kicks into their attacking 50 and wayward kicking when they did have scoring opportunities.

Sydney kicked three unanswered goals to lead 22-11 in the first quarter, before Matt de Boer broke the streak from a free-kick just before the break to cut the Swans’ lead to five points at the first break.

GWS carried that momentum into the second quarter and hit the front with with successive majors from Stephen Coniglio and de Boer.

The tide turned again, with the Swans kicking the next four to lead by 13, with Sam Reid converting a couple of strong marks into set-shot goals.

Jeremy Cameron, who led the Giants’ goalkickers with three, kicked an opportunistic major after a Swans error, as GWS pulled back to within six points at halftime.

Continuing the trend, GWS booted the first two goals of the second half through Cameron and Rory Lobb to reclaim the lead.

But Sydney followed the script of the night and added a bit of additional scoreboard impact before withstanding the last Giants charge.

The Giants’ de Boer was reported for rough conduct on Sydney’s Lewis Melican.

© AAP 2018

SYDNEY 3.4 7.4 12.5 16.7 (103)

GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY 2.5 5.10 7.13 12.15 (87)

Goals: Sydney: C Sinclair 3 G Rohan 2 L Franklin 2 S Reid 2 T Papley 2 W Hayward 2 I Heeney J Kennedy L Parker. Greater Western Sydney: J Cameron 3 D Lloyd 2 M De Boer 2 H Himmelberg J Hopper J Patton R Lobb S Coniglio.

Umpires: Troy Pannell, Ray Chamberlain, Robert O’Gorman.

Official Crowd: 34,711 at SCG.

​PORT Adelaide absorbed first-half pressure and turned the heat on Sydney in the second, to score a 23-point AFL win over the Swans at the SCG.

Youngster Todd Marshall kicked three goals and Ollie Wines racked up 35 possessions, as Port won to 14.10 (94) to 10.11(71) on Sunday.

Port kicked 10 goals to six in the second half to give them SCG wins in successive seasons.

The visitors trailed by eight and 14 at the first two breaks, but slammed on seven goals to four in the third, to carry a 15-point advantage into the final quarter.

Their lift in intensity pressured Sydney’s normally composed defenders into some uncharacteristic errors.

Captain Travis Boak started Port’s second half surge by kicking two goals in a minute.

Marshall also booted successive goals later in the quarter, as Port took control.

Long distance goals to Lance Franklin, who kicked a match-high four, and Dean Towers, got Sydney back to within four points early in the final quarter, but Port kicked the last three majors.

A 50-metre plus effort from Jared Polec after Oliver Florent gave away a 50 and majors from Sam Powell-Pepper and Riley Bonner secured the win.

The first half was a dour struggle, with Sydney failing to make the most of 21 extra inside 50s, but by the end each team had notched 52 entries.

Sydney lost midfielder Zak Jones before the game with a calf issue.

© AAP 2018

PORT ADELAIDE 1.2 4.4 11.7 14.10 (94)

SYDNEY 2.4 6.6 8.10 10.11 (71)

Goals: Port Adelaide: T Marshall 3 C Wingard 2 J Polec 2 T Boak 2 O Wines R Bonner R Gray S Motlop S Powell-Pepper.
Sydney: L Franklin 4 D Towers H Cunningham I Heeney L Parker T Papley W Hayward.

Umpires: Chris Donlon, Leigh Haussen, Andrew Stephens.

Official Crowd: 34,636 at SCG.

SERIOUS injuries to Collingwood’s Tim Broomhead and Greater Western Sydney’s Tom Scully have marred the Giants’ thrilling 16-point AFL win at the MCG.

Broomhead suffered a broken leg and Scully a suspected fractured ankle in the first quarter on Saturday, with both stretchered from the ground and taken to hospital.

The brave Pies led by 11 points early in the final term but the Giants finished a gruelling contest strongly to secure a 15.5 (95) to 12.7 (79) win – just their second victory at the ground in the club’s history.
GWS midfielder Stephen Coniglio was outstanding with 27 possessions and three goals and co-captain Callan Ward led the way with 29 possessions.

Both sides suffered significant losses before the match, with Collingwood tall forward Ben Reid (hip) and Giants livewire Toby Greene (hamstring) late withdrawals.
The loss of Reid, in particular, was a huge blow for Collingwood, who were already without suspended big man Mason Cox.
Darcy Moore was swung forward to add some marking power to the Pies’ attack but he joined the casualty list with a suspected hamstring injury and didn’t play in the second half.

The heavy injury toll marred an otherwise entertaining contest.

The Giants looked set to break the game open when they stretched a five-point quarter-time lead to 17 points early in the second quarter.
But Nathan Buckley’s men did well to weather the storm, with ruckman Brodie Grundy – the only Magpie left on the ground more than 192cm tall after halftime – a key factor.
Opposed to Rory Lobb, Grundy starred with 20 disposals, 45 hitouts and two goals to go with his imposing physical presence.

The Giants’ only win at the MCG in 12 previous visits came against Melbourne in 2014.
That barren run looked set to continue when James Aish kicked the first two goals of the final term for the red-hot Pies.

But Coniglio answered with two of his own to turn the tide the visitors’ way.
Broomhead’s gruesome injury occurred when he attempted to kick a loose ball off the ground but instead smashed his left leg into a goalpost.

Minutes later, Scully was left clearly distressed when his right ankle folded underneath him in a strong tackle.

© AAP 2018

GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY 4.1 6.2 10.2 15.5 (95)
COLLINGWOOD 3.2 5.3 9.7 12.7 (79)

Goals: Greater Western Sydney: J Cameron 3 S Coniglio 3 Z Langdon 2 A Tomlinson D Lloyd H Himmelberg J Kelly L Whitfield M De Boer T Scully. Collingwood: A Treloar 2 B Grundy 2 B Crocker D Moore J Aish J Crisp J Thomas T Phillips T Varcoe W Hoskin-Elliott.

Best: Greater Western Sydney: S Coniglio C Ward D Shiel L Whitfield J Finlayson T Taranto. Collingwood: B Grundy T Phillips J Howe S Pendlebury S Sidebottom T Adams.

​Umpires: Matt Stevic, Curtis Deboy, Hayden Gavine.
Official Crowd: 30,941 at MCG.

WEST Coast ruckman Nic Naitanui made a successful return from a knee injury, but it was Lance Franklin who stole the show in Sydney’s 29-point win in the first AFL match at Perth’s Optus Stadium.

​Franklin booted five goals in the first half and finished with eight majors in the 18.7 (115) to 13.8 (86) triumph in front of 53,553 fans on Sunday.

​Naitanui, playing his first AFL match since rupturing the ACL in his left knee in August 2016, showed he had lost none of his ruck magic by producing a series of sublime taps to advantage throughout the match.
West Coast led by one point early in the second quarter on the back of Naitanui’s strong performance in the ruck.

But with Franklin dominating in his battles against defenders Tom Barrass and Will Schofield, it seemed just a matter of time before Sydney pulled away.
The 31-year-old booted three goals in the opening term.
And by the time he kicked his seventh goal midway through the third quarter, Sydney led by 30 points and it looked to be game over.

However, Naitanui helped turn the tide late in the third term as West Coast’s midfield started to gain control.
Naitanui sent the crowd into raptures when he won a holding the ball decision in the forward pocket and then snapped truly from the set shot.
And when Mark LeCras booted a goal after the three-quarter time siren – West Coast’s fourth in a row – the margin was just five points.

But once again it was Franklin who stepped up when Sydney needed him most.
With the Swans leading by just 11 points, Franklin outbodied Barrass to take a mark, before running into the open goal to give Sydney some much-needed breathing space.
West Coast continued to fight hard, but a freak scissor-kick goal from Luke Parker killed off their comeback for good.

Will Hayward, who was a late replacement for Sam Reid (hamstring), booted two goals in the final minute to blow out the margin.
LeCras and Jack Darling booted three goals apiece for the Eagles, while Naitanui finished with 33 hit-outs, 12 disposals, and one goal.

Franklin tallied 21 possessions, nine marks, five tackles to go with his 8.1.
For the trivia buffs, Sydney defender Jake Lloyd etched his name into history with the first AFL goal at Perth’s new $1.6 billion stadium.

© AAP 2018
SYDNEY 5.1 9.5 11.6 18.7 (115)
WEST COAST 4.2 5.3 10.7 13.8 (86)

Goals: Sydney: L Franklin 8 W Hayward 2 D Towers G Hewett I Heeney J Kennedy J Lloyd K Jack L Parker Z Jones. West Coast: J Darling 3 M LeCras 3 C Masten E Yeo J Waterman L Duggan L Ryan N Naitanui S Hurn.

Best: Sydney: L Franklin J Kennedy L Parker J Lloyd I Heeney Z Jones. West Coast: N Naitanui L Shuey E Yeo M LeCras S Hurn L Jetta.

Injuries: Nil.
Reports: Nil.
Umpires: Jeff Dalgleish, Dean Margetts, Nicholas Foot.

Official Crowd: 53,553 at Optus Stadium.

AN ACL injury to premiership midfielder Tom Liberatore has topped off a nightmare first game of the AFL season for the Western Bulldogs.

Beaten preliminary finalists Greater Western Sydney pummelled the 2016 premiers in Canberra on Sunday, winning their clash by a whopping 82 points.

It was the Giants’ highest ever score and winning margin against the Bulldogs.

GWS kicked the first four goals of the game and were never challenged in the 20.13 (133) to 7.9 (51) result, as stars Jeremy Cameron (six goals) and Toby Greene (four) ran riot up forward.

While the Bulldogs were smashed at UNSW Oval in front of 10,454 fans, their worries extend to Liberatore who will undergo a second knee reconstruction 117 games into his career.

Coach Luke Beveridge later confirmed the 25-year-old had suffered an ACL injury to his right knee.
Liberatore missed the entire 2015 after rupturing the ACL on his left knee in a pre-season match.
“It’s going to be a grind again, it’s always a tough time to recuperate from an ACL injury and Tom had a tough time of it last time he did it,” Beveridge said.

The Dogs seemed to lift when Liberatore went off in the first quarter after a lacklustre start, kicking the next three goals to only be five points behind at quarter-time.
But it was all the classy Giants from there as they booted 16 goals to four after the first change.

They were led sensationally by key on-ballers Stephen Coniglio (32 possessions and two goals), Josh Kelly (29 and two) and Dylan Shiel, while Tim Taranto also played an integral role.
GWS’ new-look half-back line performed well, with former No.1 draft pick Lachie Whitfield slotting in seamlessly after Nathan Wilson’s move to Fremantle and the injury to Zac Williams.

Giants coach Leon Cameron was pleased his team were able to fire first up after being smashed at the Adelaide Oval by the Crows in round one last year.
“The last couple of years we haven’t won round one,” Cameron said.
“There’s four points for every round so they’re no different but just the build and anticipation after the pre-season that makes the game a bit bigger.”

On a dark day for the Bulldogs, Jack Macrae, Luke Dahlhaus and Lachie Hunter found plenty of the ball and young ruckman Tim English showed some serious promise in his fourth game.
Beveridge said the injury to Liberatore had some impact on his team, but not an “80-odd point effect”.
“Almost the whole thing went wrong in the end. We were probably a bit fortunate it wasn’t a bit more in the end,” Beveridge said.
“The fundamentals of the game, the in close stuff was on show from the orange brigade and we just couldn’t match it.”

​In other bad news for the Dogs, Hayden Crozier, who crossed from Fremantle during the off-season, could miss at least two weeks after straining his medial ligament.


© AAP 2018

GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY 4.2 11.4 17.4 20.13 (133)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 3.3 4.4 5.6 7.9 (51)


Goals: Greater Western Sydney: J Cameron 6 T Greene 4 J Kelly 2 J Patton 2 S Coniglio 2 A Tomlinson D Shiel H Himmelberg Z Langdon.
Western Bulldogs: J Roughead 2 B Dale B Gowers J Dunkley M Honeychurch M Suckling.

Best: Greater Western Sydney: S Coniglio J Kelly J Cameron L Whitfield D Shiel T Greene.
Western Bulldogs: J Macrae L Hunter L Dahlhaus J Roughead.

Injuries: Greater Western Sydney: Nil. Western Bulldogs: H Crozier (knee) T Liberatore (knee).

Reports: Nil.
Umpires: Simon Meredith, Andrew Mitchell, David Harris.

Official Crowd: 10,454 at Manuka Oval.

The GIANTS' AFL Women's Grand Final dream is over, losing to the Lions by 40 points at Blacktown International Sportspark on Friday night.

Sabrina Frederick-Traub kicked four goals and Jess Wuetschner three as the Lions scored a 10.4 (64) to 3.6 (24) win at Blacktown International Sportspark on Friday.

Down 7-0 early, the Lions slammed on the next seven goals, with six of them in the first quarter.
Brisbane kicked the highest score in its history, booting more than six goals in a game for the first time.

The win lifted Brisbane to second place on 16 points, level with pacesetters Western Bulldogs and Melbourne, who clash on Saturday.
The big win moved Brisbane ahead of Melbourne on percentage.

While the winner of the match between Melbourne and the Bulldogs will advance to the Grand Final, Brisbane would prefer a Demons loss and needs Collingwood to defeat Adelaide on Sunday to snare the other spot.

"There was some things that we wanted to do forward of centre in terms of moving the ball quickly and it was just one of those freakish quarters where most things go right," Lions' coach Craig Starcevich said.
"People having shots from pockets and they are going in and all sorts of things, a lot of things went right early."

The loss ended a four-match unbeaten streak for the GIANTS, who went into the game third, two spots ahead of Brisbane.

"Tonight we couldn't go with their intensity when it was really on the line and that's disappointing and that's where we've got to find a way to compete better," GIANTS coach Alan McConnell said.
"We led contested ball by six, five minutes into the game, we had three shots on goal then it all turns to s***.
"When it mattered, when it was a one-on-one game pretty much, we weren't good enough, that's the big lesson."

​There was no inkling of the Lions' first-quarter onslaught in the first few minutes, with Britt Tully kicking the opening goal for the home team.

However, Frederick-Traub and Wuetschner cut the GIANTS' defence to shreds.
The Lions' penetrating kicking into the forward 50 was too slick for the Giants, who were too sloppy when in possession.

The Giants stemmed the tide after the first quarter, but Brisbane kicked the only goal of the second and third terms to extend its lead.
Courtney Gum kicked a goal for the GIANTS in the opening minute of the last quarter to briefly revive the home fans' hopes.

But the GIANTS couldn't get the deficit below four goals and Brisbane booted the last two majors to boost its percentage.

© AAP 2018

GIANTS     1.1     1.3     3.5     3.6        (24)
BRISBANE     6.2     7.3     8.4     10.4     (64)  

GOALS
GIANTS: Tully, Gum, Staunton
Brisbane: Frederick-Traub 4, Wuetschner 3, Conway, McCarthy, Webb

BEST
GIANTS: Eva, Farrugia, Bennetts, Dal Pos, Tully, Swanson
Brisbane: Frederick-Traub, Anderson, Bates, Zielke, Wuetschner, Lutkins

Reports: Nil

​Umpires: Howorth, McGinness, Crosby

Official crowd: 2253 at Blacktown International Sportspark

LANCE Franklin has proved the matchwinner as Sydney shaded local rival Greater Western Sydney by 11 points in a pre-season match at Blacktown.

Franklin kicked the last two goals of the game on Friday as Sydney won 12.10 (82) to 9.17 (71).
Sydney led by 24 early in the game and twice by 22 in the third quarter, but GWS nailed four straight goals either side of the final break to hit the front for the first time early in the last quarter.
Midfielder Luke Parker, who had 26 disposals and 11 marks levelled the scores with a goal and then Franklin put his imprint on the game.
The tenth highest goalkicker in VFL-AFL history piloted the ball through for successive goals to secure the win.

Held well earlier by old rival Phil Davis, Franklin finished with 19 disposals, eight marks and kicked 2.2
Parker, Callum Mills Isaac Heeney and Nic Newman were strong performers for Sydney.
Kieren Jack kicked three majors for Sydney, with Franklin, Sam Reid and Parker booting two apiece..
Lachie Whitfield and Callan Ward sparked the Giants with 29 and 24 touches respectively, driving them forward at every opportunity.

Jeremy Cameron kicked three goals for GWS and pulled down seven marks.

Toby Green showed some nice touches in his first game of the year, but Brett Deledio had a quiet season debut, notching just one kick and eight touches in total.

The Swans kicked the first four goals and led by 17 at the first change.

GWS fought back in the second quarter, kicking three goals to one, to trail by one at halftime, and were down by two at the last change.

© AAP 2018

SYDNEY 4.3 5.4 9.8 12.10 (82)
GREATER WESTERN SYDNEY 1.4 4.9 8.12 9.17 (71)

Goals:
Sydney: K Jack 3 L Franklin 2 L Parker 2 S Reid 2 H Marsh J Kennedy W Hayward.
Greater Western Sydney: J Cameron 3 D Lloyd H Himmelberg J Patton L Whitfield M De Boer T Greene.
Best:
Sydney: L Parker C Mills I Heeney N Newman H Cunningham L Franklin.
Greater Western Sydney: L Whitfield C Ward J Cameron T Taranto D Simpson S Coniglio.
Injuries:
Sydney: None.
Greater Western Sydney: L Tiziani (AC joint).
Reports: None.
Venue: Blacktown Olympic Park.