The Brisbane Lions have won their first AFL premiership in 21 years after they thrashed the Sydney Swans 120-60 in front of a sold-out MCG on Saturday.
The victory marked redemption for the Lions after last year’s Grand Final loss to Collingwood by four points.
For the Swans, it was their fourth consecutive Grand Final defeat. This is the most recent being an 81-point thumping at the hands of the Geelong Cats in 2022.
What happened
The Swans kicked the first two goals of a game that had all the makings of a tight battle, with Brisbane leading by eight points after the first quarter.
However, the Brisbane Lions cemented their lead in the second quarter of the AFL premiership. The Lions kicked seven goals to Sydney’s one to create a 46-point gap by half-time. By the end of the third quarter, the difference was 73 points.
he Swans managed to claw some points back in the final quarter. This included a three-goal effort from Luke Parker, but it was too late.
Brisbane’s Will Ashcroft won the Norm Smith medal, awarded to the player of the match in the grand final. The 20-year-old had 30 disposals and one goal.
Ashcroft’s father, Marcus, was part of the Lions’ last premiership-winning team in 2003.
Brisbane co-captain and two-time Brownlow Medallist Lachie Neale had a game-high 35 disposals despite playing with an injured foot.
Kai Lohmann and Callum Ah Chee also had four goals each.
What they said
Lions coach Chris Fagan said, “When you’re the coach of an AFL team you’ve got to put up with a lot of scrutiny and a lot of pressure. To come from where we’ve come from eight years ago, to be able to do this today is a very special moment.”
Swans coach John Longmire said, “Ultimately, we’ve been able to get ourselves in the position where we’ve had an opportunity and we haven’t got it done today. We didn’t pass the test. We have a group of people, right across the footy club, who are able to do that. It’s very hard to win it if you’re not in it.”
