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The sacking of Michael Voss as head coach could signal a changing of the guard at the Brisbane Lions.
Voss, who has been associated with the club ever since the days of the Brisbane Bears, was told on Tuesday his services would not be required for the 2014 season.
His sacking came as no surprise, given the Brisbane Lions haven’t had an impressive season, but the fact the team appears unlikely to play in September this year, as well as a coaching record of around 40%, may have been a big factor behind the decision.
But somehow the Lions still remain in finals contention, and have produced some amazing performances this year, none more so than that spectacular comeback against Geelong in Round 13 whereby Ashley McGrath, playing his 200th AFL game, kicked the match-winning goal to seal a 52-point comeback win for the Lions.
Since taking the club he captained to a hat-trick of premierships in the early part of the decade to the finals as their coach in 2009, the Lions have not impressed on the field and the highest finish the club has been able to manage was 13th (in 2010 and 2012).
The club also implemented a recycled player policy, similar to that of the Sydney Swans (who are the masters in that department, as proven by two flags in the last eight years), and while that has worked out, some have failed to fire.
The biggest example was Brendan Fevola, whose intimidating figure, which made him famous at Carlton with two Coleman Medals, diminished after he was traded from the club following that infamous drunken episode at the 2009 Brownlow Medal.
Although he was able to boot 48 goals from 17 matches with his new club, a groin injury and a series of alcohol issues saw him sacked from the Lions in early 2011.
Others who have continued (or spent part of) their careers in Brisbane include Brent Staker, Matt Maguire, Brent Moloney, Travis Johnstone and Stefan Martin, among others.
All except Martin have proven to be valuable buys for the Lions in recent years.
As of now, only Simon Black, Jonathan Brown and Ashley McGrath remain from the powerhouse team that captured a hat-trick of flags between 2001 and 2003. And it won’t be long before neither man remains.
Voss’ sacking now means the Lions are on the lookout for a new coach.
Assistant coach Mark Harvey could be considered an early favourite, having taken Fremantle to the finals in 2010 before being controversially sacked 12 months later in favour of Ross Lyon.
To this day I still believe Harvey was unfairly treated by the Dockers, who had secretly been launching an assault on Lyon during the 2011 season without either man’s knowledge.
Additionally, the Dockers suffered one of the worst injury tolls in the AFL, which almost prevented them from being able to even field 22 men for what would be his final match in charge, against the Western Bulldogs in the final round of that season.
But undoubtedly, top of the Lions’ wish list is former Sydney Swans premiership coach Paul Roos.
Roos has repeatedly reiterated he is not interested in returning to the coaching scene, but the lure of Queensland’s glorious weather (especially during the summer) and the chance to inherit a talented playing list could entice him to make a move up north.
He also has a strong link to the Lions through his playing days, when he represented Fitzroy (one half of the merger) along with good friend Ross Lyon during his illustrious 356-game playing career.
His youngest son also completes high school this year, and it could also be time for the family to move away from the lifestyle of Sydney, which Roos enjoyed during his Swans coaching days.
But if Roos were to coach the Brisbane Lions, then Sydney fans would be frightened at the prospect of him coaching against the team which he turned from pretenders to contenders in the space of four years.
Roos inherited a dispirited Sydney Swans squad midway through 2002 and in three years he turned the likes of Adam Goodes, Jude Bolton, Brett Kirk, Leo Barry and Barry Hall, among others, into a premiership winning team.
However, most of the Brisbane Lions squad will relish playing under one of the most trusted mentors in the game, and there is no doubt he will fast-track the development of their youngsters as well.
But the question many Lions fans may want answered – can he return the Lions to the once-dominant force they were?
He might not become the next Brisbane Lions premiership coach but there is no doubt he will be able to return the club to where they belong, and that is in the top half of the competition.
Roos’ coaching record might not be the best in the league, but his resume is very impressive.
In eight completed seasons coaching the Swans, he coached the club to the 2005 premiership, its narrowly unsuccessful defence of it the following year, and missed the finals just once, in 2009.
It was his coaching influence which has seen the likes of Ross Lyon and John Longmire, assistant coaches under Roos when the Swans won the flag in 2005, become successful head coaches in their own right.
Lyon took St Kilda to three grand finals in 2009 and 2010, and will become the first man to take Fremantle to two consecutive finals series this year.
Longmire, on the other hand, has had more instant success, keeping the Sydney Swans at the top half of the competition and taking them to last year’s flag.
So, who should be the Brisbane Lions’ next coach? And can he coach them back to the top half of the competition in 2014? We’ll just have to wait and see.
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