AFL 2026: Brisbane Lions captain Harris Andrews on complacency and a historic three-peat

Brisbane has kicked off its chase for a historic three-peat but, according to captain Harris Andrews, it’s the furthest thing from the Lions’ minds.

There was one thing on Harris Andrews’ mind driving into Brisbane Lions’ pre-season and it wasn’t the prospect a triumphant three-peat.

“To be honest, I was thinking about how hot it was going to be here today,” Andrews said with a grin after the Lions kicked off training in Queensland’s sweltering heat on Monday.

The Lions are aiming to become the third side of the century to win three consecutive premierships after saluting in the past two deciders.

They took out three in a row between 2001-03 before Hawthorn started its historic run a decade later (2013-15).

But Andrews says the Lions can’t afford to be tempted by the future ahead of the all-important pre-Christmas block.

“Certainly not looking that far ahead, I think for us now, we’ll just break down the pre-season block by block,” Andrews said.

Harris Andrews (L) says the Lions can’t afford to gaze too far into the future. (Photo by Russell Freeman/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

“This period of time before Christmas is really important to get ‘ks’ in the legs but also build connection within the group.

“We’ve got a couple of new guys on board, particularly as leaders we want to make sure they feel comfortable and drive that connection.

“… we won’t look further than Christmas.”

The Lions won both flags the hard way, coming from fifth in 2024 and losing the qualifying final in 2025.

There will be strong competition for spots at Brisbane again this year after Oscar Allen and Sam Draper crossed from West Coast and Essendon respectively.

Andrews says there’s no complacency at Springfield as every player knows they’ll need to improve for the opportunity to defend their premiership.

“(Winning premierships) is definitely fun, it’s really enjoyable to obviously be there on the last Saturday in September and win,” he said.

Former West Coast Eagles captain Oscar Allen will be a welcomed boost for the Lions. (Photo by Daniel Carson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

“But none of us are naive to think it’s (not) a massive mountain to climb and if you get caught looking too far ahead than you fall behind.

“I think something we did really well throughout the pre-season last year was breaking down what we wanted to achieve every session.

“That’s what we’ll this again year, keep looking to build the connection within the group, keep looking to improve our skills.

“We recognise that our game is going to have to continue to improve, each player is going to have to get a little bit better, I am really confident the guys are motivated.”

Originally published as AFL 2026: Brisbane Lions captain Harris Andrews on complacency and a historic three-peat