A Brisbane team stung by their opening round loss to Sydney is heading to Geelong determined to revive their status as the AFL’s hoodoo gurus.
The Lions were stunned by a youthful Swans in their season opener at the Gabba on Saturday, slipping to a shock 31-point defeat.
If Chris Fagan’s team is to bounce back against a Cats team similarly hurting following their loss to Adelaide last weekend, it will need to bust a losing streak in Geelong stretching back almost two decades.
Not since a 14-point win in 2003 have Brisbane returned from a trip to Geelong with a win, losing 11 straight at the home of the Cats since that time.
It’s the kind of challenge the Lions have relished over the past few years as they ticked off losing streaks and bad runs against almost every club in the competition.
“I haven’t won down there since I’ve played here so certainly it’s going to be a great challenge,” key defender Harris Andrews said.
“A lot of teams have struggled down there over the years with Geelong being such a successful football club.
“It’ll be nice to hopefully break that hoodoo but at the same time we understand it’s going to be a real arm wrestle.”
Fagan criticised his team’s defending against the Swans, and Andrews himself feels he didn’t play anywhere near his best.
The 24-year-old is priming himself to lift his game against the Cats’ forward line, especially after being undone twice by Chris Scott’s team last year – including a preliminary final defeat at the Gabba.
“We’ve shown over the last couple of years that when we have had those sort of wake up calls that we’ve been able to respond pretty well and I’d expect nothing less from the boys this week,” Andrews said.
“We understand that they’re a really seasoned bunch of players and they’re going to come real physically ready to go.
“They’re sort of in the same boat a little bit in the sense that they had a not so great result on the weekend against the Crows.
“We’ll be ready for their best and I just can’t wait to get out there to be honest.”
ES 
EN 