The Brisbane Lions have frustrated fans since their golden era in the early 2000s, and it is time the developing team took the next step.
Since their last grand final appearance in 2004 the Lions have only appeared in the finals series once, when they finished sixth in 2009.
After this there has been little for Brisbane fans to get excited about, their best finish since being 12th in 2013.
The slow rebuild has been hindered by numerous injuries to key players. Without going into the tragic Brent Staker story, Matthew Leuenberger and Daniel Rich were both top-10 draft picks who combined for just seven games in the 2014 season. Losing two of your best players is tough at the best of times, but when they are your first source of the footy it hurts even more.
The mozzie squad, as it would become known, impressed in 2014 and with another season under their belts should improve dramatically in 2015. Lewis Taylor capped off an impressive season by winning the Rising Star award. James Aish was another handy addition to the team and you can tell just how valuable he is by how hard they fought to keep him during the Dayne Beams trade saga.
The young Lions have potential, but now is the time to turn potential into success.
With the likes of Jed Adcock, Tom Rockliff, and Jack Redden, along with the key inclusions of goal-kicking midfielders Dayne Beams and Allen Christensen, and the hard contested style of Mitch Robinson, the team has enough experience to make a rapid improvement. Perhaps one similar to Port Adelaide’s sudden rise.
The club is still short on quality key forwards and key defenders but they now boast one of the most potent midfields in the competition. It is time they take the next step in their development and seriously challenge for finals contention.
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Last, year in the second showdown, Adelaide destroyed Port by 47 points with a staggering 20 marks inside 50 with Tex Walker the main star.
If the Lions are clever they can use this season as a passing of the guard season and send off some very talented players whilst also trying to be competitive.
