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Recent history has proven that the team winning the pre-season grand final in the AFL is able to take that form into the home and away competition, have a good year and make the finals.
Carlton in 2007 was the last team that won the pre season premiership, but struggled in the season proper, so on account of their win over the Blues at Docklands in the pre-season grand final on the weekend, the Brisbane Lions should feel optimistic about 2013.
They made giant strides last season, surprising many to win ten games after a poor 2011, when they only registered four victories.
They had a terrible second half of 2010, producing only three wins from 18 after winning their opening four matches of the campaign.
That disaster had much to do with poor recruiting. The Lions at the time were going for experienced discards from other clubs (see Brendan Fevola), thinking they were close to premiership glory on the back of winning a final in 2009, when in reality they were miles away, being able to beat teams around or below them, but struggle against the top sides.
After being criticised for their short sighted recruiting policy that year, which many thought would put the club back several seasons, the Lions decided to concentrate on keeping early draft picks in future drafts.
Those players after tasting senior footy over the past couple of years such as Patrick Karnezis, Josh Green, exciting young ruckman, Billy Longer, Rohan Bewick, Dayne Zorko and Mitch Golby all played significant roles in defeating Carlton easily.
Zorko in particular is on the way to becoming a future star in just his second season after a magnificent second half of last year. He’s another example of someone overlooked as a teenager and then was able to bide his time and eventually dominate the Queensland League with Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach, before the Lions could ignore him no longer.
Although Brisbane recruited poorly in 2009, they had a bunch of teenagers, who they had secured in the first and second rounds of the drafts between 2006 and 2008, including Matthew Leuenberger, Daniel Rich, Jack Redden and James Polkinghorne.
They were all seen as good prospects. Tom Rockliff was another picked up in the 2009 pre season draft.
Those players are permanent members of the Lions’ lineup now and Rich is showing why he toted as a rising star four years ago.
He was best on ground in the pre season grand final and owns probably the best left foot kick in the game at the moment.
Redden hasn’t missed a game since his debut and adds class to the midfield, Polkinghorne provides the defensive edge, Rockliff is a prolific midfielder, who won the 2011 best and fairest and Leuenberger was pick 4 in 2006 and when fit, is an excellent ruckman.
However, he has had some bad injuries and is likely to be sidelined for the start of this year, but with Longer on the improve, they may be able to cope better until he returns.
The Lions added more experience in the midfield with the strong body of former Demon Brent Moloney in order to get ready for the post Simon Black era. The champion is going on again this year, but is being hindered by a knee injury and hasn’t been seen yet.
Another Demon, Stefan Martin, despite looking awkward provides another target up forward for the great Jonathon Brown, who seems to be in great shape after five goals against the Blues.
Fingers crossed for Brisbane, he can get through a season without serious injuries.
When in form and fit, he’s hard to stop, but another target next to him would help, with Aaron Cornelius, who is into his fifth year on the list showing signs that potential may finally be turning into substance and some consistency.
The defence appears to be Brisbane’s greatest strength. There is loads of experience, with Dan Merrett and Matt Maguire filling the key defensive posts.
Co-Captain Jed Adcock offering steel, hardness and run supported by one of their most improved players of last year, Irishman Pearce Hanley.
Hanley’s field kicking for a player still relatively new to the game is a sight to behold and then there’s last year’s best and fairest winner, Joel Patfull.
He is the consummate defender, who is perfectly suited to curbing the influence of the opposition’s best tall or small forwards being that in between height of 190 centimetres.
He is fast becoming the best of his ilk in this competition following in the footsteps of Essendon’s Dustin Fletcher and Dale Morris from the Western Bulldogs, who in their prime could play on any forward and generally beat them.
Adelaide like Brisbane went through the pre season competition last year undefeated and won the title and took that form into the home and away year and rose from 14th to 3rd after the finals, which surprised everyone.
There’s always a team that comes from the bottom six where the Lions were in 2012 to feature deep in the finals.
Even though they have the equal third youngest playing list in the League, coach Michael Voss seems to have finally bedded down this coaching caper and has the team all on the same page, heading in the right direction and playing wonderful football with a hard edge just like him.
If Brisbane does become the biggest of the movers and shakers this season, the AFL media fraternity will have to eat some humble pie. Won’t he enjoy that?????
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