Well, that’s it. The siren’s gone, the confetti’s been swept off the turf, and for the first time since March there’s nothing on the telly on a Friday night except real estate ads and reruns. Footy season’s over, Brisbane. Take a moment. Have a sit down. Maybe a cold one.
Because what a way to go out.
The Lions make it three
The Lions took the long way through September this year, with a qualifying final against the Swans, a semi against the Crows, and a preliminary final against Hawthorn. That prelim alone was worth the price of admission: a 20.11 (131) to 19.8 (122) epic in front of nearly 98,000 at the MCG.
Then came Grand Final day, and the Dockers looked every bit the side that finished on top of the ladder. Freo were ahead by 17 points with the clock running out. Lounge rooms across Brisbane went quiet. A few people started clearing plates. And then the Lions did what the Lions apparently just do now: they kicked four goals in the final four minutes to run down Fremantle’s lead, with Logan Morris marking strongly to put them in front inside the last minute, then snapping another from 40 metres to seal it.
The final score was 14.12 (96) to 12.17 (89), in front of more than 100,000 people, and it gave the club its second three-peat after the 2001–03 dynasty. Chris Fagan now sits alongside Leigh Matthews as the only coaches to lead Brisbane to three flags in a row.
Three-peat. Say it slowly. Let it sink in.
Spare a thought for the Dockers, though. It was their first Grand Final since 2013, they had more shots on goal on the day, and Shai Bolton became the club’s first Norm Smith medallist in a losing side. Footy can be cruel.
Rugby league: heartbreak, history and a farewell
The Broncos claimed last year’s premiership over the Storm, and while they couldn’t go back-to-back, Brisbane still had a dog in the fight deep into September. The Dolphins made a preliminary final in just their fourth season in the competition, with a packed Suncorp Stadium behind them before the Roosters ended the dream. Not bad at all for the new kids, keep those phins up!
The decider itself was an absolute ripper. Newcastle were the fairytale, and they made the Roosters work for every inch. The Roosters trailed 12–0 after half an hour before clawing their way back. Daly Cherry-Evans slotted a field goal, and then Greg Marzhew crossed in the 76th minute with Sandon Smith converting from out wide to send Knights fans into a frenzy. In the end, the Roosters won 19–18, with James Tedesco taking the Clive Churchill Medal and the Knights left waiting on their first premiership in 25 years.
And what a send-off for DCE: it was his final NRL game, and it gave the 37-year-old a second premiership ring to go with the one he won at Manly in 2011.
A Brisbane bonus: the southern states wound their clocks forward that very morning, so we got kick-off an hour earlier than Sydney, with the snags already off the barbie. And then the King’s Birthday long weekend handed us a Monday to recover. Queensland, as usual, did Grand Final weekend right.
The morning after
Every Grand Final party leaves evidence behind. Usually it’s on the floor.
There’s the French onion dip that got trodden into the rug during the Lions’ last-quarter comeback. The stubby that went flying when DCE slotted that field goal. Chip crumbs ground deep into the carpet by twenty mates all jumping off the couch at once. A trail of tomato sauce from a sausage-in-bread that never stood a chance.
And spare a thought for the split system on the wall above the telly, working overtime to keep a lounge room full of sweaty, shouting bodies cool in October humidity.
Footy’s off-season is your house’s pre-season
Here’s the thing about October in Brisbane: summer doesn’t wait for anyone. The jacarandas are turning purple, the humidity’s creeping back, the first afternoon storms are rolling in, and the cricket’s about to take over the telly. Before you know it, it’ll be a 35-degree arvo with the air sitting on your chest like a wet towel.
The players are heading into their off-season to rest up, recover and get themselves right for next year. Your house deserves the same treatment. Get the Grand Final party scrubbed out of the carpet. Get the aircon cleaned before it has to battle a Brisbane summer through a season’s worth of dust and grime. Get AirCon-Men in to sort out both, and get your home match-fit before the heat really hits.
Roll on March
So that’s another season done and dusted. Three flags in a row for the Lions, a field goal for the ages in the league, and a whole lot of crumbs in the carpet.
It’s a long wait until the footy’s back. But at least you’ll be waiting somewhere cool and clean.
Go Lions. See you in March.