Quick hits: Neale gamble pays off and a Cat-astrophe for Cameron

Brisbane’s gamble on Lachie Neale’s health pays off with a team-lifting objective, a courageous Jeremy Cameron has a painful day trip, and Charlie Cameron’s targets present a Nation Street soundtrack on the MCG.

Listed here are the fast hits from the Brisbane Lions’ victory over the Geelong Cats within the 2025 AFL grand last.

1. Cats’ tagger Mullin kicks second profession objective

When it is a tight, powerful grand last early on, that targets might be at a premium.

Nevertheless it’s honest to say that nobody would have had a objective from Oisin Mullin on their bingo card.

The person from Mayo has made his identify as a tagger, shutting down among the AFL’s most harmful attackers. However on grand last day, he received concerned on the opposite aspect of the ball.

The Cats grabbed a turnover, with Brad Shut feeding Ollie Dempsey who set Mullin on his manner. The Irishman confirmed a clear pair of heels — and a barely much less clear kick off the boot, which nonetheless went by for a objective.

There was no Tadhg Kennelly-style jig in celebration, just a few airplane arms from the Irishman — however contemplating it was solely his second-ever AFL objective, he was entitled to take pleasure in it.

2. Nation Street rings out after Charlie’s magic snap

Charlie Cameron has had a quiet season — and finals sequence — and Brisbane followers would have been hoping the Lions’ dynamo might get again to his greatest on the large stage.

Their prayers had been answered within the second time period, when the ball went deep inside 50 for Brisbane, and Cameron popped as much as seize the tablet.

There was nonetheless loads of work to do, as he wheeled round and went near the boundary earlier than snapping an absolute magnificence from a tough angle. The ball went by, prompting large roars from the Lions followers.

The opposite factor launched for this grand last was some objective songs, and for Cameron’s effort? No surprises, it was Nation Street by John Denver echoing across the MCG.

The stadium changed into the Gabba on the Yarra for some time, as Lions followers roared out a refrain or two — actually, they had been nonetheless going by the point they bounced the ball for the restart.

3. Cat-astrophe as Cameron within the wars

Grand finals aren’t locations for the faint-hearted, and the probabilities of getting spiflicated in a contest are excessive. It is not nice if it occurs in a contest along with your teammate.

Geelong hearts would have been beating rather a lot sooner within the second quarter when Patrick Dangerfield and Jeremy Cameron went for a similar ball and collided. It seemed rather a lot worse when Cameron received up grimacing and holding his proper arm.

The Geelong spearhead was struggling to make an affect after that, and he seemed in strife going off at half-time.

He was again on for the third time period, however then got here one of many moments of the grand last. Cameron chased down Jaspa Fletcher and delivered a one-handed deal with, grabbing Fletcher by the scruff and bringing him to floor.

The Cats went down the opposite finish and scored a objective, however Cameron was left in agony, clutching his shoulder and arm.

He went off however got here again as soon as extra after much more therapy. However he was clearly below duress and was unable to show issues round for his group. 

4. Lachie Neale gamble pays off for the Lions

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The Lions were rolling the dice every way you looked. The banged-up side that took care of the Magpies in the prelim was counting the cost, as Jarrod Berry was out, Kai Lohmann was iffy, and Josh Dunkley spent half his week in a moon boot.

But the big gamble was for the team’s co-captain, Lachie Neale. A calf tear in the qualifying final seemed to rule him out, but a monster trial last Saturday gave the hint he was right there. He trained on Tuesday, was named on Thursday, and despite some fans watching through their fingers, he played on Saturday.

His selection as the sub did not inspire confidence, but he came in at half-time in place of Sam Marschall. The Lions star looked proppy in the early stages, and the question of whether it was a bad call to have Neale on was a live one.

But then in a “you couldn’t have scripted this” moment, the Lions forced another turnover, and it was like old times, with Dayne Zorko feeding a handball to Neale, who ran to 50 and unloaded a kick that split the sticks.

As the Lions fans erupted, so did Neale, who stood there and roared as he was surrounded by Hugh McCluggage and Josh Dunkley for a group hug.

Brisbane led by 19 points at the final change, and the Lions were on their way.

5. Rampant Lions win fifth flag of the 21st century

Regardless of who won this grand final, there was a history of a kind to be made.

The Cats and Lions came into this decider with four premierships each in the 21st century — but after such a late September showdown, only one team could make it five.

In the end, it was Brisbane who got the win, as the Lions kicked — wait for it — nine goals to five in the final quarter, as the Lions fans gathered at the MCG were in heaven. The margin blew out beyond 60 points at one point, before Geelong kicked a few in time-on to make the score slightly less one-sided. 

The Lions became the 17th team in 100 years to win back-to-back flags, cementing the team’s reputation and the place of coach Chris Fagan.   

For the Cats, this was a devastating loss. Coming in as favourites, they had the early advantage but could not have foreseen the way they were overrun. 

For the Lions, it couldn’t get much better than this — except to do it again next year and emulate the early 2000s team that won three in a row.

6. Will Ashcroft takes Norm home — again

There were plenty of names from the Lions who could have had their name on the Norm Smith Medal after such a big win.

Harris Andrews was enormous in the backline, Hugh McCluggage had four goals to go with his 26 disposals, Zac Bailey overcame a wobbly start to kick 3.6, and Charlie Cameron’s four-star — and four-goal — performance could well have seen him called to the podium.

But in the end, it was deja vu for the Lions, as Will Ashcroft took the medal for the second year running.

The Brisbane number eight was everywhere in the later stages of the game, racking up 32 disposals, eight tackles, 10 clearances, a goal, three goal assists and 10 score involvements in all.

The win makes him only the third player to win back-to-back Norm Smiths, and only one away from matching Dustin Martin, who won three in four years for the Tigers.

At just 21 years of age, you certainly wouldn’t put it past him.