- The Lions plan to fly to Melbourne a day earlier than last year
- The coach says the team will arrive on Wednesday to “relax”
- The Lions booked their place in the final with a 10-point win over the Cats
The Brisbane Lions will fly to Melbourne a day earlier than last year as they prepare to face Sydney in the first non-Victorian grand final in 18 years.
Twelve months after falling four points short of winning their first championship since 2003 when they lost to Collingwood, the Lions booked their place in another MCG decider with a remarkable 10-point preliminary final win over Geelong.
This time, Brisbane will be playing on neutral turf, a stark contrast to when the Magpies’ army helped propel Collingwood to an epic grand final victory on home turf.
Lions coach Chris Fagan expects the club to travel south on Wednesday, rather than Thursday as they did in 2023.
“We could change things up a bit,” Fagan said.
‘We could come on Wednesday and relax a bit, do a couple of training runs here in Melbourne.
‘I’m not sure we’ll be able to get to the MCG twice, but that won’t matter.
“I think it’s good to be here and prepare for the game.”
The Lions will fly to Melbourne a day earlier than last year as they prepare to face Sydney in the AFL Grand Final.
Coach Chris Fagan said the team will arrive on Wednesday to “relax”
The result against the Cats ended the Lions’ 20-year winless run against Geelong outside Queensland.
Since Brisbane beat the Cats in the 2004 preliminary final, the Lions have lost 13 games at Geelong’s GMHBA Stadium fortress, plus a final at the MCG in 2022.
The Lions have turned around their poor record under Fagan at the MCG this year, defeating Melbourne in round five, narrowly losing to Collingwood towards the end of the home-and-away season, before defeating the Cats in a preliminary final at the grand final venue.
“We’ve had two wins and a one-point loss this year, so we’re playing better at the MCG than we’ve done before,” Fagan said.
But the Lions will be without ruckman Oscar McInerney, who dislocated his left shoulder in the first quarter against the Swans.
McInerney bravely returned to the ground, but his shoulder dislocated again during the third quarter and he was taken to hospital in the fourth quarter, missing the jubilant scenes in the Lions’ rooms after the game.
Rather than again using star forward Joe Daniher as the main ruck as they did against Geelong, Brisbane will likely call upon either Darcy Fort, who has played just two games this year, or four-cap player Henry Smith.
Twelve months ago, the Lions fell four points short of winning their first title since 2003 when they lost to Collingwood.
Fort or Smith, backed by Daniher, will face a tall task in taking on Sydney centre Brodie Grundy, a two-time All-Australian.
“It’s a real shame,” Fagan said of McInerney’s injury.
‘He’ll give someone else a chance, someone like Darcy Fort or Henry Smith.
“We are lucky, our reserve team played until last week… so we have players ready to go.”
Fagan also confirmed that superstar midfielder Lachie Neale would continue to be under the supervision of his manager due to a heel and foot injury as he was in the run-up to facing the Cats.
After barely practicing during the week, Neale shined with 31 possessions and a game-high 12 clearances.