The Brisbane Lions completed a stunning comeback to clinch their third consecutive AFL premiership in the 2026 Grand Final against Fremantle.

Reigning Premiers Brisbane pulled off the most remarkable of comebacks, swooping from the clouds to complete an amazing three-peat and breaking Fremantle hearts.

With less than five minutes remaining, 17 points down and Wharfie Time ringing out across the ‘G’. It looked like it was going to be a bridge too far for the Queenslanders.

However, they had other ideas and showed all their finals experience by managing to score four goals, in the space of just 258 seconds, to claim the Premiership Cup.

A quite remarkable feat by this squad that has written themselves into folklore by helping the club achieve a second, three consecutive flags this century (2001-2003).

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Before the big showpiece event got underway, the 100,023-strong crowd were treated to a pre-show that included a stunning 20-minute set from Kylie Minogue.

Team news saw both sides stick with their line-ups that successfully got them through the Preliminary Finals. This, after the Lions were successful in their appeal to overturn the one-match man handed to midfielder Lachie Neale on Thursday.

Charlie Cameron (pictured below) scored the opening goal of the game, in a first half that proved to be a very tight affair with the scores level at the main break, just like last year.

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In the traditional Telstra Half-Time Sprint. Jed Walter (Gold Coast) won his second in a row by managing to hold off Brandon Leary (Tasmania) and Willem Duursma (West Coast Eagles). He received a cheque of $5,000 for his junior club.

The Dockers hit the front in the third quarter, but were dealt a huge blow when they lost captain Alex Pearce (pictured below) to an Achilles injury and ruled out for the rest of the game.

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In an afternoon full of momentum swings. They saw that lead whittled away to within a couple of points, only to then respond, once more, in the final term with a Patrick Voss strike seemingly putting the Minor Premiers on the verge of a first-ever flag.

Cue ‘Wharfie Time’, an initiative by the West Australians this season, to be used during matches to get their supporters animated and as a way to spur on the players.

Unfortunately, it seems to have an opposite effect, maybe a case of nerves, as it got the Lions up and about. With a couple of minutes there was less than a kick in it.

Step forward Logan Morris, taken at pick 31 in the 2023 national draft, who held his nerve and composure, in front of the big sticks, to fire home the all-important sealer.

The 21-year-old is writing himself into the AFL history books as the only ever player to win three Premiership medals in the first three seasons of his senior career.

The final siren was met with wild emotions/celebrations by players, supporters and coach Chris Fagan (pictured below). He makes history, as well, by becoming the oldest and only ever gaffer to lead a club to three flags, despite never having played at AFL level.

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Simon Black, a Brisbane Hall of Fame Legend, presented the Premiership Cup to the gaffer and co-captains Harris Andrews, Josh Dunkley and Hugh McCluggage.

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Despite finishing on the losing team, two-time All-Australian Shai Bolton (pictured below) picked up the personal accolade of a Norm Smith medal for his best on-ground effort that included 26 disposals, seven marks, five tackles, two clearances and 686m gained.

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He received a total of ten votes from the panel of judges made up of Andrew McLeod (Chair), Shaun ‘Silk’ Burgoyne, Chris Judd, Michael Voss and Lauren Wood.

Player interviews

Brisbane Lions rooms

Lachie Neale: “It’s been the best eight years of my life. They’re an amazing club, and I’m so lucky to be a part of it.”
“It hasn’t sunk in yet. I still very much feel like a Brisbane player and Brisbane person, and it doesn’t feel real that this is probably the end of my time here.”

“I just can’t thank them enough. To achieve three premierships in a row in any era is an amazing achievement.”

Logan Morris: “I know it’s been spoken about before the game to be the first ever player to win in their first three seasons, so to be able to accomplish it is super special. I’m super grateful to be a part of this footy club.”

“I can probably say it now, but I’ve had a stress fracture in the left side of my back for probably the back half of the year. I’ve been trying to juggle my load, and it’s been a bit of a pain because you want to be fresh, but you also want to be playing.”

“It’s a credit to the medical staff in the way they’ve handled it and being able to get me up for games every week. To be able to get the reward today in a Grand Final, it pays off when your back’s pretty sore throughout the year.”

Conor McKenna: “It is just unbelievable. Probably not a lot went our way. We didn’t play that well and with three minutes to go we’re down by 17 points, so it’s just an unbelievable team.”

“To win that at that stage is just crazy. I don’t know how to describe it.”

Josh Dunkley: “It’s incredible. Words can’t describe how good it is. It’s insane. You don’t want anyone else to have this feeling. It’s what we do. We keep rocking up and playing our best at the right time of year. This group, it can do anything.”

“The belief in what we do, our system and each other. You can’t really explain it. We just went all-out. The game was there to be won; it was on the line. We were nearly down and out. But we just said to each other, ‘ Let’s go at it.”

Sam Draper: “I got overawed with emotion at the end there; the tears started flowing. A lot of work’s gone into getting to this point.”

“It doesn’t feel real. I got really emotional at the end there when I saw the high performance team and just thanked them, as well as the list manager, Dom Ambrosio and Danny Daly, just for believing in me. That I’d be back to my best.”

“The last 12 months had it all; everything happens for a reason. I had the darkest moment of my life last year and came out of that, and here I am today. It’s mental.”

Oscar Allen: “I thought we were in serious trouble. But no wonder the guys here have been so successful for so long; they play the moments so well late in the game. Charlie Cameron, Zac Bailey, Will Ashcroft, Logan Morris; just incredible footballers.”

Fremantle Dockers rooms

Caleb Serong: “Today just gave me even more belief in what we’re capable of. Until you really get to this occasion and you’re out there and amongst it, you’ve always got that question mark.”

“No more question marks. We showed that we belong here. This is where we belong, and we’ll go about making sure we get back here.”

“This club’s an incredible club, and that team that went out there and played today put their hearts on the line and their bodies on the line and did everything they possibly could to get the result.”

“It wasn’t to be, and there was another team out there doing the same thing.”

“That’s why it hurts so much, because you put yourself out there and you strive to do these great things and it kills you when it doesn’t happen. It hurts a lot, but there’s a lot of pride as well.”

View from the coach’s box

Chris Fagan (Brisbane Lions): “That is the most amazing four-minute comeback that I have ever seen. I must admit, sitting there on the bench. I thought we had put a lot of good campaigns together, but today is the day that we weren’t going to be good enough.”

“I also hadn’t given up hope because we practice those scenarios to try and get back in and win games. This group has built up over the last eight years a tremendous amount of resilience, and I knew that they wouldn’t give up.”

“I didn’t think that it might be a bridge too far. But we responded immediately after they got 17 points in front, so there was still time left. We found some momentum from somewhere and were able to get across the line.”

“This group seems to be that it has to get into a dire situation before they can actually produce their best, and two weeks in a row now that we have done that. The boys have learned to do that over a long period of time and use it to our benefit.”

Justin Longmuir (Fremantle Dockers): “We’re devastated. There’s no sugar-coating it. I’ve never felt so disappointed, but I’ve got this massive sense of pride in the group. We came to play, we executed a plan, created so many opportunities for ourselves, and I thought we competed our backsides off all day.”

“I thought there were times we got challenged throughout the game, but when we responded, we put ourselves in such a great position to go on and win it. We just didn’t quite play out the 120 minutes.”

“Clearly, we were playing against one of the better teams of all time. It was their fourth Grand Final; they’ve won three in a row, one of the best teams of all time. They just found something, and we didn’t have an answer for their run late.”

“I’m just so proud of the way we competed all day. But there’s no sugar-coating the result; it’s so disappointing and devastating. A mix of emotions.”

Result

Fremantle 12.17 (89)
Brisbane 14.12 (96)

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