Five years ago was the last time Melbourne met the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba.
The Lions were coming off a heavy loss to the Kangaroos, while the Demons were also struggling near the bottom of the ladder.
A win in this Round 5 match of 2013 was crucial before the Lions headed into a dreaded stretch of eight matches against legitimate finals contenders.
In front of a crowd of over 19,000 at the Gabba the Lions prevailed, sweeping aside Melbourne with a morale-boosting 28-point victory.
It was a big day for Brent Moloney.
In his 150th match, the former Demon tormented his old club with a game-high 35 disposals, including 10 clearances.
Moloney was the talking point of the match with Coach Michael Voss more than impressed by his stellar performance.
“He was brilliant,” Voss said.
“You always got the feeling he was a guy that would step up to the moment.”
Third-gamer Sam Mayes showed plenty of promise for what was to come.
Mayes was a standout, collecting 28 disposals for the Lions.
Co-Captain Jonathan Brown added another three to his majors tally also, reaching his 300th goal on Gabba grounds.
Crowd favourite Dayne Zorko rivalled Moloney for the Lions’ best, kicking three goals and gathering 29 touches.
The final score was 17.20 (122) to 14.10 (94).
