Well, that’s about it from me as I light a candle to the Football Gods, for providing an absorbing game that did all of the heavy-lifting content-wise.

And for a truly national game, it’s great to see a team from Sydney up against a team from Brisbane.

Commiserations to Geelong… but Geelong being Geelong, we’ll no doubt see them back on this stage for another crack at it soon enough.

Keep an eye on The Guardian throughout the week as we build up to the denouement of a season I have previously described as non compos mentis.

But for now, here is Jack Snape’s report on the Lions’ 10-point triumph over the Cats:

Oscar McInerney has headed to the Epworth for scans on his shoulder. He and the club will be doing everything they can to get him fit for next Saturday.

It brings back some great memories for this time of year, with the sports pages featuring footballers in hyperbaric chambers, and helicopters flying over club training as players take 11th-hour fitness tests.

All part of football’s Advent Calendar.

But before then, we have a Brownlow Medal Count on Monday night that might contain as much drama as this evening’s game.

Aside from some moderate criticism from this blog early in the game, credit must go to the umpires who did a great job all night – and I say this with no disrespect – by going largely unnoticed and showed a great feel for the occasion.

News just in from the entertainment desk: Katy Perry has added ‘Roar’ to her set list for next week’s pre-game Grand Final entertainment.

It’s hard to imagine that this time a week ago, Brisbane was seven-goals down against the GWS Giants… and now they’re into a Grand Final – a Grand Final will be the first in 18 years that has not featured a Victorian team, after a run of three Grand Finals in 2004-2006.

Q4: 1 minute remaining: Geelong 12.13.85 - Brisbane 14.11.95

And now Jack Payne with his moment, laying a great tackle.

But Geelong gets the ball back in and Rhys Stanley…

…

…

HITS THE POST!

Q4: 1 minute remaining: Geelong 12.12.84 - Brisbane 14.11.95

Cameron Rayner meets the moment with an outstanding goal from just outside fifty.

That might just about be it…

Q4: 2 minutes remaining: Geelong 12.12.84 - Brisbane 13.11.89

CALLUM AH CHEE! (yes this game has gone into caps-lock mode).

Brisbane back in front.

INCREDIBLE.

Q4: 3 minutes remaining: Geelong 12.12.84 - Brisbane 12.11.83

Two minutes. Five points. One helluva tackle Tom Stewart.

Ollie Henry kicks his fourth with a clever snap and we have a…

ONE POINT GAME!

Q4: 5 minutes remaining: Geelong 11.12.78 - Brisbane 12.11.83

Jeremy Cameron can’t get the bounce he and the Cats wanted, but they pull the margin back to less than a kick.

This is gonna be some five minutes.

Q4: 6 minutes remaining: Geelong 11.11.77 - Brisbane 12.11.83

Kai Lohmaan, straight out of Home & Away central casting takes a hanger, but fails to convert. Brisbane by 12-points

The ball finds its way down the other end just seconds later and Ollie Henry doesn’t miss his opportunity to pull the margin back to a single kick.

Q4: 10 minutes remaining: Geelong 10.10.70 - Brisbane 12.10.82

Make that seven of the last eight as Logan Morris puts the Lions two-goals up.

All the momentum now with the Lions, who are aiming to beat Geelong south of the border for the first time in 20 years.

Q4: 11 minutes remaining: Geelong 10.10.70 - Brisbane 11.10.76

Callum Ah Chee puts the Lions a goal in front as he kicks truly after a great transition from half-back.

Six of the last seven now for Brisbane.

Q4: 14 minutes remaining: Geelong 10.10.70 - Brisbane 10.10.70

And we’re all square here!

The ball is living largely between the arcs as the tension continues to build. This is shaping as another classic Preliminary Final.

Q4: 19 mins remaining: Geelong 10.9.69 - Brisbane 10.10.70

MANNAGH FROM HEAVE… he hits the post for the Cats, and it’s a point the difference.

Q3: 1 min remaining: Geelong 10.8.68 - Brisbane 10.10.70

As so often has been the case this year, a team reverses momentum through playing with more dare.

A snap to Cam Rayner puts Brisbane two points in front, but the Lions are now playing the game on their terms.

Q3: 4 mins remaining: Geelong 10.8.68 - Brisbane 10.8.68

… and we are all square. An incredible game befitting two terrific teams.

Q3: 5 mins remaining: Geelong 10.8.68 - Brisbane 10.7.67

Cam Rayner is looming large as he sets up a Brisbane goal to Zac Bailey to bring the margin back to a point.

This has been an incredible response from the Lions.

H E C T I C !

Q3: 7 mins remaining: Geelong 10.8.68 - Brisbane 9.7.61

Cam Rayner finds himself at the end of a great transition from Brisbane and we’re back to eight points.

And then another goal (?) to Callum Ah Chee as this game continues to find another level… before the decision is overruled on replay… seven points the difference.

Meanwhile, Max Holmes is receiving treatment on his hamstring on the boundary. Surely he couldn’t be the heartbreak story of another Grand Final?

Q3: 10 mins remaining: Geelong 10.8.68 - Brisbane 8.6.54

Mark Biclavs gets the important response for Geelong as he snaps truly. Back out to two-goals-and-change.

Q3: 12 mins remaining: Geelong 9.8.62 - Brisbane 8.6.54

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three in a row for Brisbane as Kai Lohmann kicks truly.

Momentum now with the banged-up Lions.

Q3: 14 mins remaining: Geelong 9.8.62 - Brisbane 7.6.48

Charlie Cameron converts from a set shot to kick his second and back-to-back goals for Brisbane.

That play started with what may turn out to be the most discussed incident of the weekend with a dangerous tackle on Hugh McCluggage from Patrick Dangerfield.

The night’s other talking point, Oscar McInerney, is off the ground once again and may not be seen for the rest of the evening.

Q3: 16 mins remaining: Geelong 9.7.61 - Brisbane 6.6.42

A costly turnover from Dane Zorko gifts Max Holmes the intercept and a goal to Patrick Dangerfield in his 28th (!).

Callum Ah Chee ends a run of four consecutive Geelong goals a minute later to tie it back up at 19-points.

Goals like this help, also…

Raining again at the MCG as Brisbane tries to halt Geelong’s momentum, with Charlie Cameron deep in defense. McInerney has played out the quarter but appears to be struggling with his shoulder tightly strapped.

Q2: 5 mins remaining: Geelong 8.5.53 - Brisbane 5.3.33

Rising Star winner Ollie Dempsey finds himself the beneficiary of some great transition football from the Geelong half-back line, to kick Geelong’s sixth.

Gryan Myers follows up a minute later with a miraculous snap from the pocket to blow the margin out to 17-points. A crucial five minutes here for the Lions.

Q2: 7 mins remaining: Geelong 6.5.41 - Brisbane 5.6.36

Gryan Miers runs in for an easy goal to put the goals back in front. Zac Bailey has an opportunity moments later to tie things up once again for the Lions, but sprays his kick right for a behind.

Q2: 8 mins remaining: Geelong 5.5.35 - Brisbane 5.5.35

A free kick to Lachie Neale hard up against the boundary sees him centre the ball to the top of the square, but is easily punched through by the Cats’ defenders. Scores level.

Q2: 10 mins remaining: Geelong 5.5.35 - Brisbane 5.3.33

There is no time nor space for either team, as the pace of the game has lifted as we approach halfway in the second quarter.

South Warrnambool’s Hugh McCluggage illustrates this by laying a big tackle, winning the free and kicking truly to bring the Lions back within a kick.

Q2. 13 mins remaining: Geelong 5.5.35 - Brisbane 4.3.27

Some code-hopping as a great cross from Gryan Miers sets up Ollie Henry to soccer the ball through for Geelong’s fifth.

Geelong’s resurgence has been on the back of some great clearance work, leading that stat 8-2 this quarter.

The tackling has been a great feature of this game, which you’d expect from two teams who know a thing or two about playing in the penultimate game of the season.

Q2. 15 mins remaining: Geelong 4.5.29 - Brisbane 4.3.27

And just like that, Geelong is back in front as Jeremy Cameron takes advantage of a disorganised Brisbane defence to kick his second goal of the game.

Q2. 16 mins remaining: Geelong 3.5.23 - Brisbane 4.3.27

Logan Morris marks and kicks his first goal at the MCG to restore Brisbane’s lead to ten-points, after a great intercept spoil from Darcy Wilmot.

However, less than a minute-later, Geelong pulls it back to a four-point game with a great running goal from Shaun Mannagh.

Q2. 18 mins remaining: Geelong 2.5.17 - Brisbane 3.2.20

Ollie Henry opens the scoring for the second quarter to bring the Cats back to within three-points. Great forward-craft from Henry to keep his feet and get to the ball over the back of the pack.

McInerney, shoulder strapped is back out on the ground to take the centre bounce to open the second quarter.

Q1. 4 mins remaining: Geelong 1.4.10 - Brisbane 3.2.20

Four goals in a hurry after a dour start. But the big news may be Brisbane’s Oscar McInerney heading off with a shoulder injury – a potentially massive blow for the Lions.

Q1. 5 mins remaining: Geelong 1.4.10 - Brisbane 2.2.14

Floodgates! Jeremy Cameron with the quick response for Geelong. Zac Bailey then gets the next for Brisbane in less than a minute. Early days, but we have a great contest on our hands here.

Q1. 6 mins remaining: Geelong 0.4.4 - Brisbane 1.2.8

Charlie Cameron takes a mark inside the boundary with millimetres to spare and the Lions break the deadlock with the game’s first goal. No ‘Take Me Home, Country Roads’ here at the MCG.

Q1. 8 mins remaining: Geelong 0.4.4 - Brisbane 0.2.2

The Lions’ Loman wins a dubious free-kick in the forward pocket (‘unreasonable’ contact from Tom Stewart according to the umpire), but fails to make the most of the opportunity.

The Lions are getting back in this game, but both teams’ kicking efficiency has been ordinary, both going below 60%. We’ve little more than ten minutes to go in the quarter and both sides are still without a goal.

Q1. 12 mins remaining: Geelong 0.4.4 - Brisbane 0.1.1

The Cats miss another very gettable shot and are so far able to take advantage of a dominating opening to this game. Brisbane now starting to settle with some uncontested marks, and tidy transition to have their first shot on goal, but the Lions too miss.

Q1. 15 mins remaining: Geelong 0.3.3 - Brisbane 0.0.0

A great tackle from Max Holmes sets up a set shot at goal, but his kick fades right for the Cats’ third behind.

Q1. 17 mins remaining: Geelong 0.1.1 - Brisbane 0.0.0

Geelong is first on the board with a point, after having most of the opening play.

First score of the game is… not quite. Instead we have a Geelong free kick on the goal line after an Ashcroft snap from the boundary.

Rain starting to fall at the MCG, as the two teams line up for the Welcome to Country from Uncle Colin Hunter Jr.

So how do these two teams stack up in Preliminary Finals?

Both are going better than .500.

Geelong has played in 11 Preliminary Finals and won seven of them. Brisbane has played in seven and won four.

15 minutes to the first bounce as Geelong enters the MCG for another Preliminary Final. An incredible football club.

Brisbane is the first team to run onto the MCG and if the response is anything to go by, we have a largely partisan Cats crowd here today.

Melbourne ‘turning it on’ as Melbourne does.

…and at the other end of the ground, we have Joe Daniher, of whom Jonathan Horn says: “in the space of a game, in the space of a quarter, sometimes in the same passage of play, he’ll veer from the sublime to the farcical; from the totally inept to eye-poppingly good.”

27-minutes away from the bounce… and Geelong’s line-up includes a 27-year-old rookie, Shaun Mannagh, who was playing for Werribee in the VFL this time last year. Jack Snape profiled him on Tuesday.

Here’s how the two sides are named.

GEELONG
B: J.Bews, J.Henry, J.Kolodjashnij
HB: J.Bowes, M.Bliclavs, Z.Guthrie
C: M.Holmes, P.Dangerfield, O.Dempsey
HF: T.Stengle, S.Neale, S.Mannagh
F: G.Miers, J.Cameron, O.Henry
FOLL: R.Stanley, T.Atkins, T.Stewart
I/C: L.Humphries, O.Mullin, B.Close, T.Bruhn, M.Duncan
EMG: Z.Tuohy, S.De Koning, T.Clohesy

BRISBANE
B: D.Zorko, H.Andrews, C.McKenna
HB: D.Wilmot, J.Payne, R.Lester
C: J.Fletcher, W.Ashcroft, H.McCluggage
HF: C.Rayner, J.Daniher, J.Berry
F: C.Cameron, E.Hipwood, Z.Bailey
FOLL: O.McInerney, J.Dunkley, L.Neale
I/C: K.Lohmann, C.Ah Chee, L.Morris, B.Starcevich, N.Answerth
EMG: H.Sharp, D.Fort, D.Joyce