Greater Western Sydney came to Brisbane with two items of business to take care of. The first, victory, was achieved well before half-time and the second not long after.
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The Giants have vaulted back into the top four after feasting on the hapless Lions, putting more pressure on embattled coach Justin Leppitsch with a 79-point obliteration. In a year where percentage will be crucial, the Giants fattened theirs with 17 goals in the second and third terms to climb above Sydney into fourth position.
The hammering which the Giants delivered was the type they used to receive in their formative years. Leon Cameron's side was allowed to play some Hollywood football by a Lions team which was uncompetitive for much of the game. Such was the lack of pressure being applied by their opponents, there were periods where the Giants were conducting simulated match practice at training.
Take the patch just before half time when the Giants piled on four goals in as many minutes.
It was a case of centre clearance, entry inside 50, goal, repeat. The busiest person on the field not wearing a Giants jumper was the boundary umpire who had to retrieve the ball and run it back tothe middle. If you wanted a signof how confident the Giants were of taking the points, Google the celebration Devon Smith and Zak Williams shared.
The Giants kicked 10 goals in a quarter for the first time and they had passed their previous best against the Lions before the final change. If not for the teeming rain in the last term, the Giants would have given their club record of 158 a big shake.
The Lions kicked the first two goals of the game but were then no match, out-tackled, outrun and comprehensively outplayed. Their goals generally came from a drop off in the Giants' intensity, for which the visitors received a stern talking to by their coach at the three-quarter-time huddle.
There was a passage of play in the second term which showed the gulf in class between the sides. Rohan Bewick had the ball on half-forward and needed only to find Dayne Zorko streaming into an unguarded goal square to score. His kick, however favoured Zorko's opponent, Jack Steele, who intercepted then launched a counterattack which resulted in a goal to the Giants.
The Giants controlled play from the middle, where Stephen Coniglio was outstanding.
