Lions goalsneak Charlie Cameron says he idolised Maroons great Greg Inglis during his childhood
As Brisbane prepares to do battle with Richmond in Friday night’s second qualifying final, livewire forward Charlie Cameron has told how he idolised a Queensland rugby league superstar while growing up.
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Charlie Cameron and the Lions pack will harness the famous Queenslander spirit when they face Richmond in a finals blockbuster tonight at the Gabba, with the Brisbane star revealing he idolised Maroons great Greg Inglis growing up.
Brisbane face a mammoth task in breaking a 15-game losing streak against the powerhouse Tigers in tonight’s qualifying final but they will be spurred on by Queensland’s ‘never say die’ attitude.
It comes after Cameron revealed how, as a youngster, he drew inspiration from Maroons legend Inglis – who planned to reach out to the Lions star this week ahead of their finals campaign.
“I remember watching when Inglis first went to Melbourne,” Cameron said.
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“I just grew up loving him and the way he played.
“He’s got to be my favourite player of all time.
“I always loved him as a player and as a competitor.
“He was just great to watch.”
Cameron grew up around Mt Isa and Mornington Island before moving down to Brisbane to attend Marist Ashgrove College.
It was during these early days that the superstar Indigenous player got a taste of rugby league and fell in love with the sport.
“I grew up in North Queensland around Mt Isa and then moved down to Brisbane to go to Marist (Ashgrove),” he said.
“I played a lot of rugby league and rugby union at that time.
“I still love it now and still watch it.
“I have a lot of interest in rugby league and still love to watch it.
“It’s a shame I can’t get to the games this year.”
It was only a move to Western Australia with his family when he finished school that catapulted Cameron into the AFL system.
After being drafted by Adelaide in the 2013 NAB AFL Rookie Draft – at pick seven – Cameron returned to Queensland in 2018 and this season celebrated his 100th game.
Now he has his eyes set on building success in Brisbane – as the Maroons did for Queensland – by consistently being the best.
“There was a lot of talk that we’ll just be like the Melbourne Demons to go from second to the bottom of the ladder,” he said.
“When we got back for pre-season (after the 2019 season), we tried to find ways to bridge that gap from the good teams to the best.
“We wanted to be consistent this year.
“With the COVID period all of our players worked hard in the break to get to where we are now.
“We’ve been able to adapt.”
The significance of tonight’s epic Friday night blockbuster at the Gabba cannot be ignored.
The Lions will be hoping to avoid a similar scenario to last year’s straight sets departure from the finals, losing at the hands of Richmond and GWS.
A victory over the Tigers tonight will catapult Brisbane into the preliminary final and one game away from a spot in the historic Gabba Grand Final on August 24.
10-STEP GUIDE TO BECOMING AN AFL FINALS EXPERT
This year’s finals series is going to be unlike any other before.
No games in Victoria — a Grand Final at the Gabba and Queensland fans pouring through the turnstiles.
If you’re planning on heading to a game for the first time, here’s what you need to know to be ready for the banter in the stands.
WHY IS RICHMOND THE PREMIERSHIP FAVOURITE?
The Tigers might have finished third on the ladder at the end of the home-and-away season, but in the eyes of many they are the No. 1 seed this finals series.
One of the reasons is their record to finish the season, Richmond winning 11 of its last 13 games including final six matches.
The other reason is the Tigers’ record in finals over the past four years.
Richmond has won premierships in 2017 and 2019 and made a preliminary final in 2018.
In all, the Tigers have won seven of eight finals over the past three years, which not only gives them an air of confidence but also proves their game style stacks up at the pointy end of the season.
IS BRISBANE BETTER THIS YEAR THAN LAST?
The Lions bombed out of finals in straight sets last year, after also finishing second on the ladder.
However, they do look better prepared to make a good fist of finals this time around.
On a winning percentage basis, Brisbane has a 14-3 record (83 per cent) this year, up from 16-5 (76 per cent) last year.
Brisbane’s ladder percentage has also lifted from 118.3 to 124.9, meaning they are beating opposition sides by more.
The Lions have also not just been beating up bottom sides, but are continually toppling top sides.
Against fellow finalists this year, Brisbane holds a 5-2 record – the best of any challenger.
ARE ONLY THE TOP-FOUR TEAMS A PREMIERSHIP THREAT?
Generally speaking, the answer is ‘yes’.
However, in an unusual season, anything could happen.
There is also a team that finished fifth in West Coast who are as good as anyone on their day – and will kick off proceedings with a huge advantage having a home elimination final against Collingwood in Perth.
History says making a Grand Final from outside the top-four is incredibly difficult in the AFL, though.
Since 2000, only one team has made a Grand Final from outside the top four, that team being the Western Bulldogs who won the premiership from seventh place in 2016.
WHICH FINALIST HAS THE LONGEST PREMIERSHIP DROUGHT?
Everyone loves an underdog or a battler who finally tastes success after years of heartache.
South Melbourne (which became Sydney), broke a 72-year premiership drought in 2005 and Footscray (which became Western Bulldogs) broke a 62-year premiership drought in 2016.
In 2017, Richmond broke a 37-year premiership drought.
This year is it St Kilda that has the chance to break a 54-year premiership drought that dates back to 1966.
The Saints – who are playing finals for the first time since 2011 – have the second-longest current drought of any team except Melbourne, which is currently in a 56-year premiership drought.
WHICH PLAYERS WILL BE THE MOST INFLUENTIAL THIS FINALS SERIES?
The ones who have been the most influential so far this season are a good place to start.
Brisbane’s Lachie Neale has been an unstoppable ball-winner through the midfield. West Coast’s Nic Naitanui was the starting All-Australian ruckman and is a known big-game player, as is this year’s All-Australian captain, Geelong’s Patrick Dangerfield.
Two-time Norm Smith Medal winner Dustin Martin from Richmond has been the best performer in finals of any player over the last three years, while big key forwards Tom Hawkins (Geelong) and Charlie Dixon (Port Adelaide) have had dominant seasons and will play a significant part in the fortunes of their respective teams.
IS A LION A BROWNLOW LOCK?
The short answer is yes. Brownlow counts traditionally can be unpredictable. There have been nights where the hot favourite has, for whatever reason, not polled as well with the umpires as many had predicted. Having said that, it would be one of the great shocks if Lions midfield dynamo Lachie Neale doesn’t take home this year’s medal. Has been a damaging, high possession midfield star and should become the first Lion since Simon Black in 2002 to win the medal. Jason Akermanis also won the previous year, and so did Michael Voss as Bear in 1996 in a tie with James Hird just before Brisbane became the Lions after merging with Fitzroy.
WILL THERE EVER BE A BETTER TIME FOR THE LIONS TO WIN IT?
Potentially, but being able to win a grand final on their home deck is literally a once in a lifetime opportunity for the Lions. The AFL Grand Final, which is contracted to the MCG until at least 2057, to be played at the Gabba in Brisbane? Absolutely unheard of. The odds on that happening pre-COVID were astronomical. None of us ever thought we’d see it in our lifetime, but here we are in this incredibly bizarre year. It is happening and barring a miracle it’ll never happen again. Can the Lions seize it at home? It would be a great story, and the club’s first premiership since 2003.
WHICH CLUB DO THE NEUTRALS NOT WANT TO WIN IT?
Collingwood has long been the club you love to hate it if you’re not a Magpies fan, but the odds are they won’t be around too long. They’ll face West Coast in Perth on Saturday night in a cutthroat elimination final coming off a hard quarantine. It’s hard to see them toppling the team that pipped them in the 2018 grand final. Beyond that, the neutrals – particularly Victorian fans – won’t particularly want to see Richmond win a third cup in five years. Don’t buy the spin that Victorians support their own against non-Victorian clubs in finals. It’s nonsense.
DOES GAZ GET HIS FAIRYTALE?
Remember Gary Ablett? No, not the older one who terrorised opposition teams for over a decade and kicked nine goals in a losing grand final in 1989. His son, who famously took up a big offer from the fledgling Gold Coast Suns to become its first captain in 2011. He won a second Brownlow on the Gold Coast before returning to Geelong at the end of 2017. This looms as his last season and his Cats are in with a chance of winning what would be his third premiership medal. What a swan song it would be for the best player of his generation.
IS DUSTY AS GOOD AS THEY CLAIM?
Yes, and particularly at this time of year. Richmond superstar Dustin Martin has made a habit of taking his game to another level come finals time. The Lions can certainly attest to that after watching him terrorise them in last year’s qualifying final at the Gabba. He was an offensive weapon last September, booting six goals against the Lions and another four on grand final day to claim the Norm Smith Medal as best afield. Worth a cheeky wager if the Tigers are there again.
THE REASONS BEHIND’S NEALE’S RISE TO SUPERSTARDOM
— Chris Honnery
Grant Birchall knows what makes a champion AFL player tick.
You get a fair idea when you play 248 games for one of the greatest teams of the modern era.
After winning four premierships at Hawthorn, Birchall this year joined the Brisbane Lions.
It takes a lot to impress him and it’s fair to say Lachie Neale impresses him.
“He’s in the prime of his career right now,” says Birchall.
“He just loves work. Mentally, he’s great. He does a lot of study and it doesn’t surprise me how well he’s playing because of the way he prepares.
“He gets himself in the right headspace and he’s in the prime of his career right now.”
It’s no coincidence Neale’s arrival at the Lions has sparked success.
Since joining Brisbane from Fremantle at the end of the 2018 season, the midfielder has taken his game to stratospheric levels.
His brilliant midfield work was one of the key influences in lifting the Lions to within sight of last year’s grand final.
This year, he’s stepped it up again and enters the finals as the prohibitive favourite for the Brownlow Medal.
If the bookies and pundits are right, “Charlie” will go to the player already anointed the competition’s premier player by the AFLPA and AFL Coaches’ Association.
On the eve of Brisbane’s highly anticipated finals clash with Richmond, members of the Lions squad opened up about Neale’s influence on the team and why they believe his footy intellect is leading them towards success.
According to the Lions inner sanctum, not many people realise Neale’s on-field success has come from his ability to fuse his physical gifts with being one of the most diligent students of the game.
“The one thing that it comes down to is his work rate,” says his childhood friend, Lincoln McCarthy.
“His ability to work on his strengths but also his flaws, which there isn’t a lot of.
“That’s a sign of a really strong player (and) his ability to read the game as well. He’s so measured and calm with the way he goes about his business.”
The Lions are never surprised to see him staying back after training for extra sessions or spending hours each week studying his upcoming opponents and honing his “weapons”.
“When I’m at the club, I go through a fair bit of vision, mainly of things I want to improve on,” Neale says.
“I watch some other elite players to see how they get themselves free in certain situations.
“I work on my strengths a lot at training. I work on my hands basically every session.
“They’re a real weapon of mine so I want to make sure I’m on top of that.
“I sit down with coaches every week and go through a bit of plan as to what the next game might bring us.”
Not just satisfied with improving himself, Neale has played a big role in helping Brisbane’s young talent develop in a pressurised season where the club is expected to capitalise on its finals momentum.
Lions skipper Dayne Zorko says Neale – as the ultimate team player – has been instrumental in guiding the younger brigade.
“Ever since he’s got to the club, he’s had a real will to help our younger players get better,” Zorko says.
“It’s very easy for arguably the best player in the competition to not have to do that.
“We have coaches employed to do that.
“He’s come in and tried to help our players develop, whether it be with a first or second-year player and that’s something the outside world doesn’t know about Lach.”
It’s why Neale’s teammates are hoping the bookies and pundits are right and his sublime 2020 season will be rewarded – with a Brownlow Medal, and potentially a grand final appearance later this month.
“He puts in the work so hopefully he gets the reward,” says forward Cam Rayner.
“I’m just lucky that I get to play alongside him.
“As a player of his standard and at the top of his game, for him to stay back after training and do more work than anyone else, shows why he is where he is.”
CAMERON VOWS TO DRAW ON QUEENSLAND SPIRIT
— Chris Honnery
Charlie Cameron and the Lions pack will harness the famous Queenslander spirit when they face Richmond in a finals blockbuster at the Gabba, with the Brisbane star revealing he idolised Maroons great Greg Inglis growing up.
Brisbane face a mammoth task in breaking a 15-game losing streak against the powerhouse Tigers in Friday’s qualifying final but they will be spurred on by Queensland’s ‘never say die’ attitude.
It comes after Cameron revealed how, as a youngster, he drew inspiration from Maroons legend Inglis — who planned to reach out to the Lions star this week ahead of their finals campaign.
“I remember watching when Inglis first went to Melbourne,” Cameron said.
“I just grew up loving him and the way he played.
“He’s got to be my favourite player of all time.
“I always loved him as a player and as a competitor.
“He was just great to watch.”
Cameron grew up around Mt Isa and Mornington Island before moving down to Brisbane to attend Marist Ashgrove College.
It was during these early days that the superstar Indigenous player got a taste of rugby league and fell in love with the sport.
“I grew up in North Queensland around Mt Isa and then moved down to Brisbane to go to Marist (Ashgrove),” he said.
“I played a lot of rugby league and rugby union at that time.
“I still love it now and still watch it.
“I have a lot of interest in rugby league and still love to watch it.
“It’s a shame I can’t get to the games this year.”
It was only a move to Western Australia with his family when he finished school that catapulted Cameron into the AFL system.
After being drafted by Adelaide in the 2013 NAB AFL Rookie Draft — at pick seven — Cameron returned to Queensland in 2018 and this season celebrated his 100th game.
Now he has his eyes set on building success in Brisbane — as the Maroons did for Queensland — by consistently being the best.
“There was a lot of talk that we’ll just be like the Melbourne Demons to go from second to the bottom of the ladder,” he said.
“When we got back for pre-season (after the 2019 season), we tried to find ways to bridge that gap from the good teams to the best.
“We wanted to be consistent this year.
“With the COVID period all of our players worked hard in the break to get to where we are now.
“We’ve been able to adapt.”
The significance of tonight’s epic Friday night blockbuster at the Gabba cannot be ignored.
The Lions will be hoping to avoid a similar scenario to last year’s straight sets departure from the finals, losing at the hands of Richmond and GWS.
A victory over the Tigers tonight will catapult Brisbane into the preliminary final and one game away from a spot in the historic Gabba Grand Final on August 24.
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Originally published as Lions goalsneak Charlie Cameron says he idolised Maroons great Greg Inglis during his childhood