AFL grand final: Lions lose 90-86 to Collingwood in thrilling grand final

The Lions gave it their all, but it wasn’t enough in the end as Collingwood took home the premiership in one of the greatest grand finals in recent memory.

Lions head coach Chris Fagan. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)

They scrapped. They clawed. They produced moments of breath-taking brilliance and at no stage looked overawed.

They looked their MCG monkey squarely in the eye and at times the monkey trembled and looked down at its feet.

They scrapped so hard it looked as if they might even “out-Collingwood’’ Collingwood in the best game of the season in which the score changed nine times and the teams seemed to be tied together by an invisible rubber band.

But sometimes in life pure guts sprinkled with occasional moments of brilliance is not good enough and the Brisbane Lions heartbreaking four point loss to Collingwood in the AFL grand final was one of them.

Brisbane have gone down in a thriller. Picture: Getty Images

Former Brownlow Medalist Gerard Healy felt Brisbane were not the best side on the day but their Phar Lap heart almost enabled them to snatch a famous victory. Brisbane had beaten Collingwood six times in a row and played like they knew how to win but just couldn’t quite get there.

If the Broncos display as much heart as the Lions did in Sunday’s NRL grand final they might even win.

Brisbane’s hope of an historic code double are gone but the Broncos, many of whom are friends with the Lions, will be spurred by their efforts.

The sight of their shattered faces after the full-time siren can only motivate them to not suffer a similar fate against Penrith.

The match was a grand final for the ages played at a furious pace with defenders from both teams running like KISS singer’s Gene Simmons mascara in the early afternoon sun.

For a long while it seemed the likes of Charlie Cameron, Zac Bailey and Lincoln McCarthy would steer Brisbane to a victory watched by the iconic Lions premiership team of 2003 who are having their reunion at a Melbourne Hotel on Sunday.

Brownlow medalist Jason Akermanis even had a plan, if Brisbane won, to invite the sides to share 10 year reunions for the rest of their days where they could swap stories of how they beat Collingwood in deciders.

An epic encounter ended with the Pies as premiers. Picture: Getty Images

But it was not to be.

The old boys’ emotions were twisted by the fact that Collingwood are coached by Craig McRae, a popular member of the Lions golden era and a generous social organizer of trips and nights out during the glory days.

McRae nonchalantly announced on stage that the day was already the best of his life after his wife Gabrielle gave birth to a baby daughter, their first child, who was originally scheduled to arrive mid-October . She will join his two daughters from his first marriage.

An insight into the chilled out world of McRae came when the crowd flashed on his group in the pre-match show and they were heartily singing along with Mike Brady’s Up There Cazaly which was being performed on the ground. They looked like fans not players. It was not a bad (head) space to be in.

The Lions MCG record became so grim for several years it was almost as if the initials stood for Miserable Cursed Ground. So often the Lions have been Super Man at the Gabba and Clark Kent in Melbourne but this time, while not flawless, there was so sense they were playing an invisible bogey man.

Pies coach Craig McRae revealed his partner gave birth on grand final day. Picture: Getty Images

In fact there times when Collingwood, who scored 10 more behinds than the Lions, were the nervous ones.

Cruelly, this match was always going to be era defining for the Lions.

They have won more matches than any club in the competition over the last five years but during this time there have been four different premiers – and Brisbane are not one of them.

Inch by inch they are getting there but there is no guarantee they ever will.

Maybe, they will get another chance but everything will change in a couple of years when their treasured home fortress, the Gabba, is out of play for at least six years.

In the cruel sporting world there are no promises.

Originally published as AFL grand final: Lions lose 90-86 to Collingwood in thrilling grand final