A TRANSFORMATION is taking place at the Brisbane Lions. But it’s occurring so quietly and attracting so little attention, it’s effectively being done by stealth.
“The word I’d use to describe the stage we’re entering as a club is growth,” Lions coach Michael Voss told the AFL Record.
“We’re trying to build on a young group that’s coming through in the same age bracket.
“If they can evolve together and become close with one another, that will be pretty important. But that takes time.”
If you missed this development, you’re not alone. After all, it was just 18 months ago the Lions recycled six experienced players at the end of the 2009 season. Five were acquired by trades - Carlton’s Brendan Fevola, Richmond’s Andrew Raines, St Kilda’s Xavier Clarke, Sydney Swan Amon Buchanan and West Coast’s Brent Staker - and St Kilda’s Matt Maguire was subsequently snared late in that year’s NAB AFL Draft.
At the time, Voss said the strategy was an attempt to bridge the gap separating the Lions and that season’s best teams, Geelong and St Kilda.
It was also seen by many as an audacious play to win a premiership while 2001-03 flag heroes Jonathan Brown, Simon Black and Luke Power were still at, or near, their best.
The Lions saw experience, more than youth, as the path to their next flag, it seemed.
But to focus on the Lions’ 2009 recruiting is to miss the bigger picture.
If you ignore that year, the Lions have traded only once for an experienced AFL player since 2002, bringing in Melbourne midfielder Travis Johnstone at the end of 2007.
Consider also the talent and experience the club has lost since 2006: Voss, Jason Akermanis, Brad and Chris Scott, Chris Johnson, Nigel Lappin, Tim Notting, Michael Rischitelli, Justin Sherman, Johnstone and Jared Brennan.
Look beyond the more heralded youth-based rebuilds of Carlton and Melbourne - their recent swags of No. 1 draft picks can make that difficult - and consider some of the young talent the Lions have assembled in recent drafts.
In 2005-06, they picked up highly rated talls Mitch Clark and Matthew Leuenberger with first-round picks, while key-position prospects such as Tom Collier, Aaron Cornelius and, last year, Pat Karnezis and Ryan Lester, were subsequently added.
And in the midfield, the Lions have assembled an even greater depth of young talent. The biggest and most promising haul came at the 2008 draft, with Daniel Rich, Jack Redden and Tom Rockliff, while small forward Todd Banfield may eventually migrate on to the ball, too.
Voss and Lions national talent manager Rob Kerr hope last year’s group of midfield recruits - Jared Polec, Josh Green, Bewick and elevated rookie Claye Beams - will be just as good.
Add James Polkinghorne (2007) and 2009 draftees Callum Bartlett, Ryan Harwood and Jesse O’Brien, the latter two having made their debuts last year, and the Lions believe they are well-placed for the future.
“I think we’ve got a better group of young midfielders than we generally get given credit for,” Kerr says.
“Much will depend on how last year’s draftees develop, but I think we’ve got a developing midfield group that stacks up pretty well.”
Rich, Rockliff and Redden are the most recognisable faces of this group.
This round against St Kilda, Rich will play his 50th game, Redden his 36th and Rockliff his 24th. All are already key parts of the Lions’ present.
Voss says they bring a complementary blend of skills to the Lions’ midfield.
“You’ve got the smart decision-maker (Rockliff), the hard runner (Redden) and the brilliant ball-user and penetrating kick (Rich),” he says.
“You need those different types within your midfield.”
The AFL Record spoke with the three players in the lead-up to the
round-three match against Melbourne. Although interviewed separately, the camaraderie among them was evident.
They are good mates. Rockliff and Redden hit it off almost as soon as they met and have been housemates for nearly three years.
Like most at the Lions, all three moved from their home states to join the club - Rich from Western Australia, Rockliff from Victoria and Redden from South Australia.
Being away from family and friends creates a bond between the club’s out-of-towners, they say.
“Probably 80 per cent of the team is from interstate,” Rich says.
“So we probably spend a bit more time with each other, and rely upon each other a bit more, than we would if we were in our home states.”
Redden is the least talkative of the three. However, Black says Redden enjoys prank calling his teammates occasionally and, while not loud and outgoing, has a “fairly zany personality”.
And, if you believe Rockliff, he is not always a dream housemate.
“Jack tends to walk around the house with not a lot of clothes on,” Rockliff says with a laugh.
“Which can make it a bit awkward when you’re trying to eat your breakfast.”
In his own defence, Redden says Rockliff is “pretty chirpy in a smart-alec way”.
So it seems. Rockliff says Rich is a good guy, but can’t resist a playful dig: “He’s got pretty deep pockets and short arms though.”
But Rockliff has a serious side. It was this that convinced the Lions to elevate him to their leadership group this year, in just his third season.
“He’s got great leadership qualities that all the boys see and value,” Redden says.
Voss describes Rockliff as a natural leader. “There are some people who don’t have to work on it, try to do anything differently or put it on a goal sheet,” Voss says. “That’s Tom.”
Rich is well-spoken and thoughtful when we speak with him.
Redden and Black say he is deep thinker. Redden says he can sometimes over-analyse the game, but Black says his thoughts on the game and contributions to team meetings are often insightful.
He also has the ability to balance his football with down time in the surf or on the golf course, Black says.
With time and development, Black believes Rich could captain the Lions in the future.
Speaking with Rich, Rockliff and Redden, it is apparent they have a high regard for each other’s games and equally high expectations of one another.
As you’d expect, Rockliff and Redden both praise Rich’s kicking.
His raking left-foot and deft passing have dazzled footy fans since his 2009 debut and made him a unanimous choice as that season’s NAB AFL Rising Star.
He also finished sixth in that year’s best and fairest - the highest placing of any first-year Lion since Fitzroy and the Brisbane Bears merged in 1996.
Just as it was for the Lions, 2010 was more of a struggle for Rich as opposition clubs started to pay him more attention, often tagging him. That said, he still played every game and finished eighth in the best and fairest.
Voss says one of Rich’s major focuses this pre-season was improving his endurance so he could get to more contests.
Rockliff acknowledges Rich’s efforts and says his running is better. But he says he still has room for improvement.
It is not a personal criticism, just an honest assessment. One Rockliff makes with the team’s best interests at heart.
“The more contests ‘Richy’ gets to, the more times he’s going to get his hands on the ball and the better it’s going to be for the team,” Rockliff says.
Redden and Rockliff did not make the same seamless transition into the AFL as Rich.
While Rich already had a well-developed body, Redden needed to add strength and bulk to his frame, while Rockliff needed to lose weight and improve his endurance.
Rich says both have since taken “massive steps” to overcome these shortcomings, their hard work reflected in their “great seasons” last year.
Redden finished fifth in the 2010 best and fairest on the back of a work rate and tackling intensity that Voss described as “phenomenal”.
Having spent most of that time playing on the wing and at half-forward, Voss says Redden, who played as an inside midfielder for most of his junior career, had learned to balance when to go in and attack the ball and when to stay out and exploit his running ability in open space.
While Rockliff praises Redden’s new physique and running ability, he says his ball use is “at times quite good”, gently implying it is an area he can improve.
After playing just one game in his first season, Rockliff played 19 last year and finished third in the NAB AFL Rising Star award.
The breakout season came after a gruelling pre-season he supplemented with private boxing training.
And this pre-season, Rockliff sliced 30 seconds off his best 3km time, running 10 minutes and 40 seconds, which was more than two minutes quicker than his effort at the 2008 NAB AFL Draft Camp.
It is soon clear no one at the Lions doubts Rockliff’s ability.
“A very smart player,” Redden says.
“He’s one of the best I’ve seen with his hands. His decision-making by hand is fantastic,” Black says.
Voss says Rockliff’s understanding of the game is one you’d expect of a much older player.
“He understands game aspects very quickly and you’ve rarely got to teach him something twice,” Voss says.
Given their talent, dedication and high expectations of themselves and their teammates, it is no surprise Rich, Rockliff and Redden have lofty ambitions.
Ideally, they want to emulate the deeds of the Lions’ 2001-03 premiership teams, and there are parallels between those sides and the current group of youngsters that give them hope.
“Every great team in the past has had a batch of younger players coming through,” Rockliff says.
“Nigel Lappin, ‘Vossy’, (Jason) Akermanis, Black and Power all came through together. If we can stick together as a group, who knows what will happen in
the future.”
In this era of cashed-up expansion sides, keeping talented young groups together is harder than ever. This year, it has been widely reported Rich, who comes out of contract at the end of this season, is in the sights of Greater Western Sydney and his hometown’s two AFL clubs, West Coast and Fremantle.
Asked about these reports, Rich says his sole focus this season is on playing good footy. But he is quick to stress he loves living in Brisbane and playing for the Lions.
Voss, for one, is confident Rich won’t want to leave a young group with so much potential.
It will take the young Lions time to reach that potential. Rich, Rockliff and Redden appreciate that, Rockliff noting Geelong endured inconsistency and harsh football lessons before youthful promise was transformed into on-field dominance.
However, all insist they can make the finals this year.
But only if they, and the team’s other emerging youngsters, step up and give Brown, Black and Power the on-field support they need, Rockliff says.
While the Lions’ sit 0-3 after their first three games, they could easily be 2-1, with their matches against Fremantle and Melbourne going down to the final siren.
Regardless, the draft class of 2008 has stood up.
All three are in the Lions’ top-five for possessions (Rockliff is first, averaging 27 a game), contested possessions and tackles (Redden is first, averaging nearly eight a game).
Despite their youthful desire to make things happen now, clearly they and the Lions will be at their best in future seasons.
Just when that will be is hard to tell.
But Black makes one thing clear - when he and Power eventually retire they will be leaving the Lions, in particular their midfield, in good hands.
“We’ve got quite a few young guys the footy world doesn’t know too much about,” he says.
“But they’re a good mix of inside and outside players and, like Freo’s young guys last year, I think they can really have an impact and drag us back up the ladder. “They’re the future of the club.”
