Brisbane coach Craig Starcevich concedes the Lions simply must find a way to curb the influence of Adelaide superstar Erin Phillips if they are to claim a maiden AFLW premiership.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Phillips, a noted big stage performer who was adjudged best player on the ground in the Crows' grand final wins in 2017 and 2019, also has a happy knack of playing well against the Lions.
Starcevich has lost count of the carefully tailored plans to contain the veteran's brilliance that have ultimately proved unsuccessful.
"Erin gets hold of us most times whenever she plays against us, so we haven't figured that one out yet," Starcevich told reporters in Adelaide on Friday.
"Whatever plan we're up to now, we'll see how that goes."
Phillips was the match-winner when the sides last met at Hickey Park in round four with 21 possessions and four goals in a stellar performance that left Starcevich in awe.
"That round-four game was nearly the best I've ever seen her play, to be honest," he said.
"It was enormous. I sat back and thought 'my god, that was good'."
The Lions, who lost grand finals to the Crows in 2017 and the Western Bulldogs in 2018, go into Saturday's premiership decider at Adelaide Oval as underdogs.
But the coach is confident his charges have learnt from the mistakes of the 12-point round-four defeat.
"They sort of did us a favour in a roundabout way because from that point onwards we came up against (premiership) contenders most weeks and we were pretty good," he said.
"Once we worked out what the tempo was and the competitive spirit we needed we were okay, which gives us a bit of confidence.
"That was a turning point for us, definitely, in round four."
A crowd of just over 53,000 watched the Crows defeat Carlton in the 2019 grand final at Adelaide Oval.
COVID-19 restrictions mean that figure will likely be between 35,000 and 40,000 fans on Saturday with the overwhelming majority keen to celebrate an Adelaide win.
"The girls are really excited for a big crowd, to be honest," Lions skipper Emma Zielke said.
"We've got a young group and they just love the energy, they love a challenge, and I think that's going to be one of the biggest challenges ... blocking out the crowd and focussing on the job.
"I think the girls are really pumped to be in front of a huge crowd on the big stage because they love the pressure to perform."
Australian Associated Press
