Your 2023 Brisbane Lions season preview is here, just in time for the start of the new AFL season! Everything you need to know about the Lions is here, all in the one article – aren't you lucky. We’ve got information about squad changes, rankings and stats from last year, key matches to look for, as well as none other than ex-AFL star Heath Shaw’s opinion on how the Lions will go this season.
Let’s get cracking shall we!
Recruitment Report
Let’s take a little look at the new signings for the Lions, along with all the players they’ve parted ways with:
Ins: Will Ashcroft, Shadeau Brain, Josh Dunkley, Jaspa Fletcher, Jack Gunston, Darragh Joyce, Darryl McDowell-White Jnr and Conor McKenna
Outs: Tom Berry, Mitchell Cox, Connor McFadyen, Dan McStay, Mitch Robinson, Ely Smith and Deividas Uosis
2022 Rankings
Where did the Lions rank for disposals in the AFL last season? Or what about clangers? All the key rankings for the Lions are below:
Kicks: 1st
Handballs: 4th
Disposals: 7th
Marks: 2nd
Hit-outs: 2nd
Frees For: 1st
Frees Against: 3rd
Goals: 2nd
Behinds: 7th
2022 Stats
Who had the most goals for the Lions? Who had the most marks? All these stats and more can be found below:
Most Disposals: Lachie Neale - 749
Most Tackles: Hugh McCluggage - 115
Most Clearances: Lachie Neale - 191
Most Marks: Harris Andrews - 154
Most Goals: Charlie Cameron - 54
3 Key Matches To Watch
These are the key matches you can’t miss if you’re a Lions fan (up to Round 15):
Match 1: Round 1, vs Power, at Adelaide Oval (Sat, Mar 18, 4:35pm)
Match 2: Round 4, vs Magpies, at Gabba (Thu, Apr 6, 7:35pm)
Match 3: Round 10, vs Suns, at Gabba (Sat, May 20, 7:30pm)
2023 AFL Season Expectations
List management take a bow, you deserve a raise. Preliminary finalists and add the would be #1 Ashcroft, A grade midfielder Dunkley and 30 goal forward Gunston. Premiership contender I think there is no doubt.
Finished last year 6th but only 4 points off first and lost to eventual Premiers who went to another level during finals. The lions are a hard team to knock. If, and I do say IF, they do want to go one better, the forward line needs to get in sync, plenty of first power but only one person can have the ball at anyone one time.
The backline is a little but if a worry, what’s the mix? Who is the offence? Who is the lock down? Sort that out, play your role and let the front end go to work…nek minute potential flag 2023!
Predicted Finish: Top 4
