AFL Grand Final 2024: Brisbane celebrates 60-point premiership victory

A sore Lachie Neale was sporting a moonboot as Brisbane continued their premiership party on Monday. See how the celebrations unfolded as the Lions returned home.

Satisfied but sore, Lachie Neale was one of the first to limp towards the team bus as the Brisbane Lions made their exit from Fitzroy on Sunday morning.

After two hours with their Victorian fans, the Lions headed to home to Brisbane to meet fans at Springfield Homes Arena on Sunday night.

The co-captain told the adoring Lions that the doctors wouldn’t be too pleased he was up until 6am on the left foot that caused him so much grief over the last three months.

The superstar aggravated the foot even further on Saturday and by 9.30am emerged in a hefty moon boot at Brunswick St Oval to greet the fans.

At one point Neale was sitting with his foot elevated on a suitcase trying to find relief.

But he didn’t care about the pain.

“I couldn’t give a sh--,” he said.

“It’s a little bit sore this morning but that is probably because I was up until 6am in it.”

The rain drizzled at first then began to soak but the maroon and blue crowd also couldn’t give a you-know-what.

SCROLL DOWN TO SEE HOW THE CELEBRATIONS UNFOLDED.

Lachie Neale was sporting a moonboot. Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

The most popular man from the flag-winning crew was undoubtedly Chris Fagan, with the crowd desperately demanding he get on stage after players were introduced.

At one point the coach even told the crowd to quit chanting his name.

“It’s very nice but it’s probably time to stop it, OK?,” he chuckled.

Footy’s most aloof player Joe Daniher remained well inside the mystique.

As retirement rumours continue to swirl, Daniher politely declined requests to speak to media and didn’t address the fans on stage either.

The Lions players arrived on a bus from the Pullman Hotel in East Melbourne, but Daniher was in Fitzroy already, as he didn’t stay with the team overnight.

The always affable Irishman Connor McKenna was draped in the flag of his home country in the rooms post-match on Saturday and that same flag was being worn like a skirt the morning after.

Fitzroy last played a VFL game at Brunswick St in 1966 but the oval felt like home on Sunday.

Charlie Cameron ran around with a Fitzroy Junior Football Club scarf and Eric Hipwood nodded to the other side of the club’s history, wearing a Brisbane Bears cap.

Speculation was heavy on Saturday night that blonde dynamo Kai Lohmann would be ‘best on ground’ in the celebrations.

But it was another youngster Logan Morris who was the talk of the team.

The Lions went from their post-match function at Centrepiece in Melbourne Park to Chapel St to party on Saturday night.

Cam Rayner embraces the Brisbane fans. Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

After returning to the Pullman, Morris and a few teammates went to Salt – a recovery gym on the ground level at the hotel – and jumped in an ice bath.

His teammates woke up a photo of him in the ice in a player’s group chat.

“I think he went in and did a bit of recovery this morning, credit to him,” midfielder Hugh McCluggage said.

Jaspa Fletcher was dragged into some recovery of his own, as he looked after a cousin who went a bit too hard.

“There are a few sore heads out here,” he said.

“I went (to the afterparty) for a little bit but then I spent a bit of time with my family. I had to look after my cousin who probably had a few too many, he is a big Lions fan. I was on a nurse role.”

McCluggage said the night after the grand final triumph over Sydney was all he had dreamt of.

“We experienced the other side of it last year. That wasn’t very enjoyable,” he said.

“To get the win on the final day of the year, it is everything I had hoped for.”

Fagan left the party earlier than his players and said he didn’t do any dancing on Saturday night.

“But I probably will at some stage this week,” he said.

There was no stopping the smiles at the original home of the Lions and Norm Smith medallist Will Ashcroft happily had them planning a return trip in 12 months time.

“I was speaking to (brother and incoming draftee) Levi after the game and I said we will run it back next year,” Ashcroft said.

No surprise that drew another raucous cheer.