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Opinion
After four successive finals campaigns and the frequent disappointments that have defined the club’s period in the premiership window, it is time the Brisbane Lions admitted that the elusive premiership will not be won with Joe Daniher as a focal point up front.
When Chris Fagan took the coaching reins at the Lions in 2017, things could hardly have gotten any worse. Sadly, they did in the short term, with a wooden spoon in his first year at the helm enunciating the monumental task he had undertaken.
However, the veteran mentor did right the ship soon after with an improved overall team performance the following season.
A finals appearance in 2019 had AFL fans in the sunshine state believing for the first time since the early stages of the 21st century that they could indeed make an impact at the business end of an AFL campaign.
There was a raw and inexperienced feel to that Lions cohort and despite a brave effort against the Giants in the semi-final, they appeared well off the pace of the championship-winning Tigers.
The next year, 2020, told a similar story, with a belting at the hands of the Cats in the preliminary final providing another football audit for a squad that was simply missing a point of difference and some extra class that would allow them to triumph when the stakes were at their highest.
Enter Joe Daniher, the ex-Essendon key forward who had sought a fresh start after a frustrating time with the Bombers, as injury brought about extended periods of inactivity.
The Lions were looking for a key forward, a target, a weapon in the forward line, that point of difference they required and a player capable of drawing the attention of key defenders and thus opening up opportunities for those around them. Instead, they got a dud.
(Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
For all his height, size and presence on the field, the Bombers were smart in agreeing to jettison a player that rarely showed his best for them and one destined to infuriate fans in Queensland to a similar degree after his move north.
There is something promising, threatening and appealing about Daniher as he swaggers onto the field. For someone having never seen him play, it could even appear as an intimidating scene; especially when the 28-year-old brandishes the cheeky smirk that appears to have hoodwinked many a junior opponent and helped forge a reputation that far exceeds his talent.
Put in simple terms, Daniher arrives with all the bravado and presence one wants in a man destined to play one the most difficult and crucial positions on an AFL field.
Yet more often than not, he fritters out in a weak and listless pop gun of smoke that scares no one and contributes very little to his team in a meaningful way.
Sure, every now and again Daniher has cashed in, bagging multiple goals in matches with both Essendon and Brisbane.
However, Fagan lured the six feet seven inch forward north as the cherry on top of what was becoming a very tasty and consistent cake, with a need for him to crash packs and scuttle the defensive structures of opponents.
Most importantly, the coach required and expected Daniher to produce in the most crucial games of the season.
While the Lions have racked up some serious scores over the last two seasons and Daniher has played his role in some of those wins, the finals fade-outs of 2021 and 2022 presented perfect yet untaken opportunities for him to finally stamp himself on the competition.
In 2021, Daniher managed just a lone finals’ goal and despite the gutsy run of the Lions in 2022, as well as a match winning kick from the goal square in the qualifying final that knocked the Tigers out of the running, when the big moment arrived, he was once again nothing but an unmitigated failure.
Along with many of his team mates, Daniher produced very little in the humiliating 71 point drubbing dished out by the Cats in the prelim and with considerable activity now taking place in the trade space, it appears Fagan has realised that the current group lacks the firepower to topple the big guns when the blow torch is applied.
One of the key reasons why that is the case is Joe Daniher, who pales into insignificance when compared to some of the more aggressive and effective key forwards in the competition.
Daniher will be a Lion until 2025, should his contract be honoured. However, if the club is serious about winning a premiership before their window closes and regeneration is required, they would be best to attempt to do so without him and cease persisting with a player who has simply not delivered.