Inside the key moments that sparked Brisbane’s rebuild and climb back up the ladder

It was the great Goldfields heist which kick started Brisbane’s charge back up the ladder. Andrew Hamilton looks at the key decisions that helped the Lions pull off one of the ultimate draft steals.

Jarrod Berry has settled into life at the Lions. Picture: Getty Images

It was the great Goldfields heist.

Brisbane might be playing for the first time in Ballarat against the Western Bulldogs on Saturday but it was in the historic city where the most significant plan behind the club’s list rebuild was hatched over a series of bitter winter afternoons.

The AFL had sent Greg Swann north to replace sacked CEO Malcolm Holmes midway through 2014, and at the end of the 2016 season the league’s football operations manager, now Suns CEO, Mark Evans inserted David Noble as the Lions’ new football manager.

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The pair led the search for a coach to replace Justin Leppitsch, whose tumultuous three-year reign had come to an end.

They pulled their first surprise when they signed the untried Chris Fagan out of Hawthorn’s football operations department. Fagan came with some heavy AFL endorsements but was ultimately Brisbane’s choice.

Finally Brisbane had an off-field team they and the AFL believed could bring success – but they still needed players.

Chris Fagan after being appointed Brisbane Lions coach. Picture: Jono Searle

More eyebrows were raised when they traded down the order to secure an extra pick in the top 20 of a talent-laden draft.

“That was a significant moment for our footy club,’’ Swann said.

National recruiting manager Stephen Conole and his team had been making the trek down the highway from Melbourne all winter to watch the North Ballarat Rebels and had earmarked Hugh McCluggage as the best player in the draft.

However, as the year wore on they became more determined to also secure his best mate Jarrod Berry.

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Then one particularly harsh day Cedric Cox, a quietly spoken indigenous kid from WA’s Kimberley region who had moved to Victoria to capture the attention of AFL scouts did just that with a starring performance.

Suddenly it was no longer a nugget the Lions were after but the whole stream.

“I remember a game between the Rebels and the Eastern Rangers, it would have been lucky to be a couple of degrees that day, it was freezing cold and wet and that was before the renovations at the ground too, so there was nowhere to escape,’’ Conole said.

“I remember Cedric played that day and he stood out with how clean he was, he just coped with the conditions so well.

“And Jarrod and Hugh just kept presenting.’’

When the season ended with the Lions finishing second last, they held picks 2, 23 – which was a priority selection granted by the AFL after several tough seasons – and 24, which came to the club from the Gold Coast in the trade for Pearce Hanley.

The Lions got Jarrod Berry, Hugh McCluggage, Cedric Cox and Alex Witherden in the same draft. Picture: Jono Searle

They feared Berry wouldn’t last until 23, but given he had suffered injuries throughout his final year of under-18s, he had slid down the pecking order. The Lions suspected if they could trade for another pick in the teens they may land him.

GWS had been making noises about their interest in Sandringham’s Tim Tarranto, so Brisbane went to the Giants with a proposal to swap their picks 2, 31, 52 and 60 for 3 and 16.

Brisbane had also tracked Ben Ainsworth, who had already declared his willingness to head north, so the Lions figured they had a safety net if Essendon, who held the top pick, called McCluggage’s name.

“It was a good draft so whoever was there at three was going to be a good player, but no doubt we always wanted Hugh,’’ Conole said.

“Jarrod had quite an injury-interrupted top age season. He never hit the heights he did as a 17-year-old and that worked in our favour.

“We knew he could play and we were so impressed with his personality and the leadership he showed at North Ballarat.’’

Hugh McCluggage and Jarrod Berry have a special bond. Picture: Getty Images

The plan worked, Essendon went for Andrew McGrath and Brisbane pounced on McCluggage with pick three.

Bids on academy players pushed their pick to 17 but Berry was still available.

Then with 23 they chose Alex Witherden, who is also an established senior player, while Cox, who has shown exciting signs in his 12 AFL games but was always considered a development player, came with 24.

McCluggage is from Warnambool but moved to Ballarat to attend boarding school at Clarendon College, where he met Berry.

The pair now live together in Brisbane and McCluggage has no hesitation saying his AFL journey was extra special because he has shared every step with such a close mate.

“Our paths have been similar since we got drafted, similar rate of progression, debuted at the same time,’’ he said.

“For us it was awesome to be able to come in with Fages and with Nobes and to start that change of the culture and the direction of our club.’’