By Jake Niall
Deadlocked with their opponents at half-time and purportedly banged up, the Brisbane Lions have completed one of the game’s most stunning transformations within 22 days to floor the more fancied Geelong in a grand final that confirmed a northern dynasty.
In a decider that went from level to a levelling, Chris Fagan’s Lions completely reversed the result of a qualifying final in which they were embarrassed by a more physical Geelong, producing seven goals on end and then cantering to a 47-point victory that showcased the skills and panache of the AFL’s most talented team.
Lion power: Brisbane’s Logan Morris and Kai Lohmann enjoy the moment.Credit: Eddie Jim
The turnaround was 180 degrees, culminating in a nine-goal final quarter avalanche. Few who’d witnessed Geelong’s similar obliteration of the Lions in that prior final, at the same venue, would have projected this outcome.
The grand final reversal – Lazarus with only a double bypass, perhaps – was symbolised by the resurrection of dual Brownlow medallist Lachie Neale, who had hobbled off in that qualifying final with a calf tear that seemed to confirm the end of his season. Neale suggested as much, before he spent untold hours living in a hyperbaric chamber.
As with Neale, that bleak Friday night result suggested the Lions were longish odds to get back to the summit.
Geelong’s collapse from midway through the third quarter coincided with the aggravation of a serious arm injury to superstar key forward Jeremy Cameron – the Cats later confirmed it was fractured. The superb tackle in which Cameron hurt his arm created a goal for Max Holmes, briefly recapturing the (one-point) lead.
Jeremy Cameron in obvious distress during the grand final.Credit: AFL Photos
It was Geelong’s last hurrah.
Patrick Dangerfield, who had enjoyed one of the peak finals games of his career in the preliminary final runaway victory over Hawthorn, was unable to replicate that effort in this grand final, in which he had just 10 touches and did not score; that neither Dangerfield nor Cameron (0.2) managed a goal was a measure of the defeat.
Deployed as substitute, in a gamble that turned into a windfall, Neale was instrumental in the second-half rout (he had a raft of important clearances and a crucial long goal), which was piloted by a host of Lions. That group was headed by co-skipper Harris Andrews in defence, midfielders Will Ashcroft and Hugh McCluggage, and – finally – forwards Charlie Cameron (four goals) and Zac Bailey, the latter discovering his goalkicking radar in the second half after a profligate 0.5 turned into a lethal 3.6.
Through their emphatic victory – which few observers, least of all this one, had envisaged – the Lions won their fifth flag of the 21st century, surpassing Geelong (four) and Hawthorn (four) and became the first team to win back-to-back premierships since the modern Richmond juggernaut (2019-20).
It is a premiership that holds ramifications for the competition, on three key questions.
One is what clubs should pay for northern academy recruits and father-sons – as Ashcroft, a glittering father-son jewel, fittingly accepted his second consecutive Norm Smith Medal for best afield from another dual Norm winner, Luke Hodge.
His brother Levi was not among the grand final’s best, yet still exceptional for a first-year player, while Andrews –an academy product – controlled the back half with 11 interceptions and several spoils. His primary opponent Shannon Neale was rendered ineffectual.
Andrews rivalled Ashcroft, McCluggage and Bailey as the most influential afield and must be viewed as the AFL’s premier defender, comparable to ex-Geelong great Matthew Scarlett.
The second ramification lies in the pre-finals bye, which has lifted the prospects, not simply of teams placed fifth to eighth, but also those who lose the qualifying final. Ironically Fagan had been a critic of that bye, but has profited mightily after two flags when his Lions have played four finals.
If Geelong might have had Tom Stewart with a pre-grand final bye, on what we witnessed in this game, it would take far more than that sole defender to bridge the gap between Lions and Cats.
The third major question is simply whether the Brisbane juggernaut can be halted in 2026 or, if that fails to happen, the year after. The 23 they fielded contained eight players aged 22 and under, and unlike Geelong, they had up to five of their best 23 unavailable.
The father-son and academy bid system is being reviewed by the AFL in December. An architect of the Lion ascendancy, ex-CEO and new AFL football boss Greg Swann is among those favouring that clubs pay a higher draft price for high-end sons and academy graduates.
Needless to add, the Lions’ fifth flag since the merger in the mid-1990s will only enhance the growth of the code up north, where Gold Coast are finally emerging.
It’s conceivable that this unit could already have three flags, but for a four-point defeat by Collingwood two years ago.
Brisbane had exceptional contributors all over the field – from Darcy Gardiner subduing superstar Cameron, albeit “Jezza” played with one arm for most of the grand final, to remarkable veteran Dayne Zorko, whose ball use from half-back was important in turning the tide.
Youngster Jaspa Fletcher, also a father-son, had 29 disposals and earned Norm Smith Medal votes from Hodge, while journeyman ruckman Darcy Fort excelled in the ruck contests. Key Geelong midfielders Holmes and Bailey Smith had a combined 62 possessions but were far less influential than their Brisbane counterparts.
The Cats had fewer injuries besides gun defender Stewart, knocked out of the grand final by concussion protocols, but were sluggish and uncertain for much of the game and were swept aside in much the same way that Brisbane had been in week one of the finals.
Chris Scott, who was gracious in defeat, had punted on Rhys Stanley as ruck support for his versatile tall Mark Blicavs. If Neale was the punt that landed for the Lions, Stanley’s selection did not.
Scott said the Cats had opted to keep Cameron out there, despite the arm injury. “He was clearly limited.”
The Geelong coach, whose win-loss ratio is unmatched in competition history and who has taken the Cats to the final four in most of his 15 seasons, felt that the Cats had not had the game on their terms when the scores were even (up to mid-third quarter). The game, he said, had not been “going the way we wanted” even when the scores were square.
The carnival flavour of the second half was underscored by the AFL’s (or was it the MCC’s) willingness to play the songs that the Lions belt out at the Gabba when Charlie Cameron and others scored majors, as Take Me Home, Country Roads (Charlie Cameron) and Hey Jude (McCluggage) were heard eight times over the course of the grand final, with the large Lions supporter base joining.
Dangerfield was statesman-like in his speech on the field. The Lions were “far too good” but his words for vanquished teammates was upbeat. “To our players, be proud. Hold your heads up high,” said the 35-year-old skipper.
The grand final was gone in about one crowded half-hour, from mid-third quarter. From a game that changed so dramatically, further change could well come.
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