For the past two years, Lions helmsman Chris Fagan has battled through adversity, heartbreak and scrutiny regarding his calibre as a leading AFL coach.
So how did he get through it to inspire Brisbane’s first premiership in 21 years?
“I’ve had a terrific football club that have got around me, and they know the person that I am, and they never had any doubt in me – and neither did the players,” Fagan said.
Chris Fagan celebrates with his victorious Lions.Credit: AFL Photos
“I’ve had a great family as well, and a good batch of friends.”
There is so much more at stake when the Lions head into a season than most people think.
For a sport so often considered the little brother of rugby league in the Sunshine State, winning the hearts and minds of pundits is an uphill battle.
But the way Fagan has endured a tirade of scepticism to eventually lift the premiership trophy is everything Queenslanders live and breathe for: determination, hard work, and defiance in the face of naysayers.
Last year, Fagan was engulfed in a racism controversy from his time at his former club Hawthorn – where he was director of coaching – when a complaint by past players was taken to the Human Rights Commission claiming mistreatment.
Fagan, coach Alastair Clarkson and staffer Jason Burt denied any wrongdoing and were cleared by an AFL probe, with no “adverse findings” made.
Fagan admits the ordeal took a toll as he pled his innocence while trying to spearhead the Lions’ first premiership since the dynasty days of the early 2000s.
Lions coach Chris Fagan and co-captain Lachie Neale.Credit: Eddie Jim
Saturday’s premiership triumph, a 60-point demolition of the Sydney Swans, was the culmination of a desire to thrive through the turmoil.
“To be honest with you, I haven’t had too many lows,” Fagan said.
“I felt fairly comfortable all the way through, to be honest. I don’t think I’m anything special, but it was a pretty tough time, especially when it all came out and things are being said about you.
“But I’m very grateful for everyone who’s got in my corner and looked after me.”
While off the field Fagan faced his challenges, on it, he needed to galvanise a team struggling with a perceived grand final hangover in light of their four-point defeat to Collingwood last year.
Brisbane started the season with two wins from their opening seven games, while rumblings of an internal rift following an off-season trip to Las Vegas only heightened pressure on the club.
But Fagan kept his faith in the group, trusting that they could overcome their trials.
And with a cohort of young stars stepping up to the plate in the injury absence of Keidean Coleman, Tom Doedee, Lincoln McCarthy and Darcy Gardiner, that trust would prove crucial.
In turn, his fledgling crop responded, as Kai Lohmann, Will Ashcroft, Logan Morris, Jaspa Fletcher and Darcy Wilmot all assumed key roles in reviving the title mission and helping to usher in a season of jubilation at The Den.
Fagan’s message, according to Fletcher, was not to overthink the occasion.
“Just enjoy footy. It’s the best time of year, so embrace it and enjoy it was a big message for us,” Fletcher said.
“Being a young kid coming into a pretty good team with a lot of experience, all you want to do is go out there and play your role and bring the energy.
Jaspa Fletcher
“That’s all they ask from us, they don’t ask us to go out there and be remarkable, they just want us to be reliable. Every week us young kids want to go out there, bring the effort and intensity, and the rest will take care of itself.”
But to achieve their ultimate goal, the Lions would have to navigate a path only the Western Bulldogs had in the top-eight finals era – winning the flag from outside the top four.
Throughout the campaign – and even the season – they had been forced to find a victory from various circumstances.
In their elimination final against Carlton, they blew out to a strong lead before needing to stem a rush of momentum against them and hold firm.
Against the Greater Western Sydney Giants, they fought from 44 points behind to claim one of the finest comebacks in history.
Brisbane’s Brandon Starcevich was a wall across the backline.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
In the preliminary final against Geelong, they stayed in the arm wrestle, and found a way to gain the ascendancy.
Those experiences culminated in their emphatic grand final job, and according to Brisbane defender Brandon Starcevich, were heavily leaned on in the build up to the decider.
“Coming into finals, that was sort of the piece we spoke about, that we’ve been able to win from different positions,” Starcevich said.
“It’s not always going to go your way in finals games, there’s going to be momentum shifts and whatnot.
“Having that confidence that we’ve been there, done that – and not just during the season, but other finals campaigns – we know we can get the job done whatever we’re facing.”
The challenge now will be for Fagan’s men to ensure this is not their last visit to the big dance.
Fagan conceded their success had been a long time coming – after two preliminary finals, a semi-final and a grand final until this point – and it would be a tall order to bottle these exploits.
When asked how he would overcome such odds, he responded: “You’ve got to stay grounded and not get too carried away, and that’s always the big challenge after you win one because it’s pretty intoxicating winning an AFL premiership.
“I think they’d be pretty motivated to have that feeling again. What do you reckon?” he asked Will Ashcroft next to him.
“I’m ready for preseason,” the youngest-ever Norm Smith medallist responded.
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