THE BRISBANE Lions have conquered Melbourne in a NAB AFL Women's opening round match dogged by horrendous weather.

In a game interrupted by lightning late in the second quarter, the Lions adapted better to the wet conditions to win by 15 points at Casey Fields in Cranbourne.

With the game in the balance heading into the last term, Lions forward Brittany Gibson goaled from a set shot in the low-scoring slog in Melbourne's south-east.

A strong northerly wind greeted players in the opening quarter and Melbourne wasted first use, managing only three behinds after captain Daisy Pearce won the toss.

But heavy rain arrived late in the opening term and, although the wind dropped, the storm clouds moved in with several lightning strikes eventually forcing the game to be halted.

The Lions seemed to benefit from the break, with Sabrina Frederick-Traub snapping a brilliant goal in traffic to put the Lions ahead.

With heavy rain starting to fall after just five minutes of play, it was little surprise the game was a scrapfest.

Brisbane soon took control of the game, holding the Demons goalless during the second half.

Lions onballer Emily Bates (11 disposals, eight tackles) stood out at the stoppages, Samantha Virgo marshalled the play from the backline and Frederick-Traub presented well all day.

Demons captain Daisy Pearce (19 touches, nine tackles) relished the wet conditions, with Karen Paxman also impressive.

Demons forward Richelle Cranston is likely to find herself under scrutiny from the match review panel for a high bump after barrelling into Lions midfielder Jamie Stanton during the first term.

Stanton left the ground in the hands of trainers with an apparent collarbone injury but returned to play out the game.

With less than a goal seperating the teams late on, Gibson's straight kick gave the Lions the crucial scoreboard buffer before a 50m penalty pulled teammate Kate McCarthy to the goalline for the sealing major.

BRISBANE LIONS     0.0  2.0  2.1 4.1 (25)
MELBOURNE             0.3  1.4  1.4  1.4 (10)

GOALS
Brisbane Lions: McCarthy, Frederick-Traub, Campbell, Gibson
Melbourne: Grierson

BEST
Brisbane Lions: Virgo, Bates, Randall, Ashmore, Gibson
Melbourne: Paxman, O'Dea, D Pearce, Duryea, Scott

UMPIRES: Ryan Guy, Martin Rodger, Michael Pell

CROWD: 6,500