Lions coach Chris Fagan familiar with plight of Richmond mentor Adem Yze

Brisbane Lions coach Chris Fagan knows how his Richmond rival Adem Yze is feeling as the Tigers go through a significant rebuild.

Brisbane coach Chris Fagan’s “empathy” for his Richmond counterpart Adem Yze will only go so far on Saturday when the Lions attempt to stretch their unbeaten start to the AFL season to four matches by beating the Tigers at the MCG.

Fagan and Yze know each other well from the time they spent together at Melbourne and Hawthorn.

The pair were both on the coaching staff at the Hawks, while Yze was a player for the Demons when Fagan was an assistant coach at Melbourne.

Yze started his senior coaching journey last year at Richmond, with the Tigers finishing with the 2024 wooden spoon as they embarked on a rebuilding phase following a golden era for the club that included premierships in 2017, 2019 and 2020 under then coach Damien Hardwick.

Fagan was also part of a rebuilding process at Brisbane after taking charge of the Lions in 2017.

The Lions finished last that season and then 15th in 2018.

However, the building blocks installed by Fagan has since resulted in Brisbane playing in six successive finals series and culminated last season with the club’s first premiership since 2003.

The Tigers are rebuilding under coach Adem Yze. Picture: Jonathan DiMaggio/Getty Images

“There’s always pain associated with developing a young team, which is what they (Richmond) have chosen to do after a really strong few years – I have great empathy for him (Yze),” said Fagan, who had a chat with the Tigers coach after Brisbane’s 119-point demolition of Richmond in May last year at the Gabba.

“I could tell by the look on his face how disappointed he was.

“I’d been in that place before, so I just mentioned to him that it won’t stay like this forever.

“I’m sure he knows what he’s doing, and (on Saturday) they won’t be worried about where they’re at as a footy club – they’ll be trying to beat us.”

The Tigers have been on the receiving end of hefty defeats in their past two games against Port Adelaide and St Kilda, but it’s Richmond’s round 1 13-point win over Carlton that sticks in Fagan’s mind.

“It looked like it was going to be a one-sided game (for Carlton), and then they (Richmond) got a sniff and you couldn’t stop them,” Fagan said.

“That wasn’t that long ago, so we’re really mindful of that lesson that Carlton would have got, and hopefully our boys are aware of that and understand the need to play our best footy and play it consistently.”

Lions coach Chris Fagan is hoping to guide his side to a fourth successive win this season by beating Richmond on Saturday. Picture: Albert Perez/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Ruckman Oscar McInerney is set to return for the Lions on Saturday after missing last weekend’s nine-point win over Geelong due to a bout of gastro.

However, forward Kai Lohmann has been ruled out after suffering another ankle injury against the Cats.

“He’ll miss this week and we’ll just make sure he’s fully right again before he plays,” Fagan said of Lohmann, who also missed a game after hurting his ankle in Brisbane’s round-1 win over Sydney.

The contenders to replace Lohmann include teenager Will McLachlan, who performed well in his AFL debut last month in Brisbane’s victory’s over West Coast.

“There have been some other boys in the reserves that have been in good form, but … he’s certainly one of the guys that are in the running,” Fagan said.

Originally published as Lions coach Chris Fagan familiar with plight of Richmond mentor Adem Yze