3 Flags Down, Could the Lions Claim a Fourth? High-Performance Chief Weighs In

MELBOURNE, Australia—An enviable culture and the quality of players who missed out on Brisbane’s historic three-peat in the AFL Grand Final means more success could be coming for the Lions.

That was the opinion of the Lions’ Head of High Performance Damien Austin following his team’s thrilling 14.12 (96) to 12.17 (89) win over Fremantle in the premiership decider at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Sept 26.

In a nail-biting finish, the never-say-die Queensland outfit snatched victory from the jaws of defeat with a four-goal-in-four minute blitz to send the minor premiers Fremantle back west.

With a 17 point lead, Dockers fans began celebrating “Wharfie Time,” which triggered a rapid-fire onslaught from Charlie Cameron, Zac Bailey, and Logan Morris in the final minutes for the Lions steal a late and dramatic victory.

Lions’ Cubs Waiting on the Wings

With veteran Lachie Neale is set to leave the team and coach Chris Fagan not commenting on his future, Austin believes his players are well placed to go after a nigh-unprecedented fourth consecutive AFL flag in 2027.

“You’ve got players like Dan Annable, Keidean [Coleman], Lincoln McCarthy and Bruce Reville—all these players who probably could’ve played,” he told The Epoch Times in the hours after the grand final.

“They’re all challenging and pushing. Even though we’ve been successful as a club, we’ve still got players who want to be successful and play in grand finals.

“They’re challenging the rest of them and making them better,”

“They want to be successful as much as anyone else because they remember 10 years ago when we were at the bottom of the ladder.”

Annable made his AFL debut against the Sydney Swans in Round 1 this year at just 18 years of age, coming up with 13 disposals.

He went on to play just three senior games for the Lions in 2026.

“We’ve got young kids like Dan Annable. Probably at any other club, he’s playing AFL every other week,” Austin said.

“There are some really good players there and going really well.”

On Bailey and Morris, Austin said both stars could command higher salaries elsewhere, but the collective winning mindset of Brisbane was too strong for them to leave.

“You think about the culture of the place, and we’ve got players like Zac Bailey and Logan Morris who are probably staying for less money just to stay with the group and be successful,” he said.

“But it’s also a successful culture built around the place.”

Austin added that being out of the constant AFL media glare in Victoria was another contributing factor.

“I think being out of the Melbourne and Victoria bubble, they bond quite well. That’s because you’re away from families and so forth,” he said.

“So they’ve got a great lifestyle as well, like surfing and golf, and just being outside. It’s sunny all the time.

“It’s better than here [Melbourne]. It’s very nice and they love it up there.”

Final-quarter goal hero, Bailey, had 20 disposals against the Dockers.

And after a quiet afternoon, Morris’ calmness in kicking his two match-winning goals in the dying seconds, saw him finish with a total of three majors.

Bailey was born and raised in the Northern Territory, playing his junior football for Southern Districts.

The 27-year-old livewire midfielder/forward is now a 192-game veteran, turning down a massive offer from Adelaide to re-commit during the finals series for eight years at Brisbane, until the end of 2034.

Morris, just 21, was recruited to the Lions from Werribee Districts and the Western Jets representative team in Melbourne.

Making his debut in 2024, he has played in all three of the Lions’ consecutive grand-final victories and has been the team’s back-to-back leading goalkicker.

Also this month, he signed a two-year extension keeping him in the Sunshine State capital until at least the end of 2029.