There is a serious problem with the Brisbane Lions.
The Lions are in risk of missing the finals entirely this year after faltering badly out of the gate the year before and narrowly missing out on winning the grand final.
HBAgency
HBAgency
HBAgency
HBAgency
HBAgency
HBAgency HAgency
Earlier in the season, Brisbane was forced to vehemently refute explosive claims of internal strife, but the team’s performance on the field has remained, to put it mildly, disorganized thus far.
For a team that has been so successful over the last five seasons, what specifically has gone wrong?
offensive battles unlike anything else
A cursory look at Brisbane’s statistics this season makes its forward-of-the-ball struggles immediately noticeable.
Since originating the
There is a serious problem with the Brisbane Lions. Brisbane has consistently been among the highest-scoring teams in the competition, reaching the finals under Fagan in 2019.
The Lions finished second in points scored in the previous season, trailing only Adelaide, and have finished in the top five in the AFL scoring rankings for the previous five years.
Brisbane has had difficulty scoring points this season; they are only ahead of St Kilda, West Coast, North Melbourne, Richmond, and Hawthorn in 13th place in the competition’s scoring rankings.
With just five wins and an 89.1 percentage in 2018, Fagan’s second season in charge, Brisbane’s current percentage of 94.2 is the lowest since then. Even more astonishing is the reality that this
The team’s current percentage is supported by a 70-point thrashing of North Melbourne, who have consistently struggled.
Only seven times this season have Fagan’s team scored more than 100 points, a feat they accomplished in nearly half of their games last season en route to the championship game.
In a way, the 100-point threshold has been a golden number for Fagan’s Lions over the last 12 months. The Lions finished 9-1 in the 10 games they played both at home and away during the previous season in which they scored ten or more goals, with a single point being the difference in defeat.
Brisbane is averaging 73.85 points per game this season. In contrast, the Lions were just 5 times below this threshold last season, going 2-3 in those contests.
Every single one of
Brisbane’s top goal scorers from the previous campaign are all producing less than they did the year before.
With 61 goals from 26 games, Joe Daniher led the Lions in the previous season. Charlie Cameron, Eric Hipwood, Zac Bailey, and Lincoln McCarthy completed the top five. Compared to last season, all five players are currently averaging fewer goals per game.
Stars’ “garbage” attempts under a microscope
The level of effort put forth by Brisbane’s star players across the field has been the main cause of the team’s issues this season, according to former Sydney Swans coach Paul Roos.
Two players who have already fallen short this season are Daniher and Cameron, according to Roos, a 2005 premiership winner with Sydney.
He said on ABC’s AFL Daily podcast, “They’re lazy on defence, their two brilliant forwards aren’t buying in anymore.”
They’re going down a slippery slope, and Chris [Fagan] needs to figure out a way to win back the players who appear uninterested in playing as a team. Individual acts are keeping them in the game, and they have the talent to be able to do that.
“When it comes to defense, Charlie Cameron and Joe Daniher are doing a terrible job. They’ve always been a little dubious, but after seeing them, I believe that they would be a different team if you replaced Joe Daniher and Charlie Cameron with Brody Mihocek and Jamie Elliott. Even if Chris says something in public, he would know that.
“I’m sitting there getting really frustrated with Joe Daniher. The rationale for their departure
the forward line so frequently and failing to produce an outcome is a result of their inability to tackle and chase, two qualities that define a great team.
Throughout his 184 games between Brisbane and Essendon, Daniher has frequently been a divisive player. Roos was especially critical of Daniher, labeling some of his performances as “borderline embarrassing.”
He stated, “It’s about what Joe wants to do.”
He’s one of those annoying players who never quite lives up to the hype. My concern is: Is Joe who he seems to be? Is he a forward who scores five or six goals against the best teams and then one or two against the worst teams? If that’s the case, you need to surround him with structures. That is not how you can have two or three in your forward line.
“You need to surround him with guys who are willing to fight and scrape.” Lincoln McCarthy is the complete opposite, so I feel bad for him. It is quite challenging if two or three of your forwards are unwilling to participate.
For the coach, what does this mean?
How much can change in a span of six months.
Chris Fagan and the illustrious Leigh Matthews would have both been immortalized in Brisbane’s history had the team won the grand final in September of last year.
Fagan is arguably the coach under the most pressure in the competition right now as a result of this difficult start.
Having signed a contract extension in March of last year, the 62-year-old is currently signed through the 2020–21 season, but if the Lions don’t see an improvement soon, there’s no guarantee he will play out the remaining years of his deal.
“A coach would be extremely concerned at this point because they are no longer interested in playing for each other,” Roos stated.
“He’s done a fantastic job qualifying for and winning the finals.”
the top 4 from the previous 4 years. I understand from my experience as a coach; he would be extremely concerned.
Roos talked about his own experience, in which he, along with his Sydney teammates, was in a similar situation the year they famously won the premiership.
Ironically, he said, “I remember it was around Round 5 against the Eagles and we were in this position.”
After the game, I just threw a spray. We were just [playing] selfish football, all playing for ourselves. It was just the facts; it wasn’t even a spray. However, the Swans [players] deserve credit for deciding to get back in touch.
This relates to the choice that the players for the Brisbane Lions wish to make. Do they wish to compete against one another still? Are they still interested in competing for a premiership? It’s challenging.
labor, and much of it involves selflessness. What I’m witnessing is garbage, pure garbage, especially from their star players.”They can accomplish it, but right now the focus is on the players saying, ‘We want to get back to the mountain [top],’ and they are more than capable of doing so,” rather than Chris Fagan.
Where can they begin to make a difference?
The fact that the Lions had to endure a difficult matchup for the first seven weeks of the season is a plus.
Only two of Brisbane’s seven opponents are currently outside the top eight of the AFL; one of those is Collingwood, the defending champions from the previous season, which is presently ranked 10th.
After enduring a rigorous first month, the fixture list
about to head towards Brisbane.The QClash at home against the Gold Coast this week is a must-win, and then it’s off to Adelaide to take on the Crows. The Lions will have a month of games that they can win, including matches against Richmond, Hawthorn, the Western Bulldogs, and St Kilda, if they can split those two matches.
With Tom Doedee and Keidean Coleman already out for the season, Brisbane has also had a terrible start to the season due to injuries.
As his teammates huddle around him, a Brisbane Lions player lies on the ground.
Forward spark plug Zac Bailey is expected to return by mid-season, while Will Ashcroft, who tore his ACL last year, is anticipated to return by then.
suffered defeats in all three of its opening games at the Gabba in 2024.(Darren England, AAP)
Last year, the Lions dominated teams in stoppage and turnover scores, but this year, both figures have decreased at a startling rate. From second in the AFL in terms of stoppage scores, they are now ranked eleventh. In a similar vein, they have fallen from second place in the league to second-last place, trailing only West Coast in scoring from turnovers.
Brisbane’s continued prolificism in the midfield is another plus for Fagan.
With 40.7 clearances per game, the Lions remain the best clearance team in the AFL despite their difficulties. In the same way, they are third in the AFL in terms of contested possessions, only behind the Gold Coast and Carlton.
The one this weekend
Since the two teams’ first meeting in 2011, there may not have been a match with more serious ramifications than this one, which will be the 26th between Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
For the first time since 2018, the Suns defeated their bigger brother to end a nine-game losing streak last season. That game was played inside the welcoming walls of Carrara Stadium.
Brisbane will be hoping that some home cooking will help them this time around against their rivals.
If the Suns lose at the Gabba for the first time in six years and they open the season 0-4 at home, alarms will undoubtedly start to go off.
