The Brisbane Lions have finalised their playing list for the upcoming 2025 Smithy’s VFL Season with highly touted draft pick, Dan Annable among several new players to join the squad.
For three consecutive season, the Lions were one win away from the VFL Grand Final with VFL Coach, Ben Hudson and his men looking to go one better this year.
“Bringing in the likes of Hayden Bertoli-Simmonds, James Creighton, Curtis McCarthy and Charlie Offermans, all with VFL experience, gives us another layer of depth across the park,” Hudson said.
“Harry Arnold returns after two years on Sydney’s AFL list and Taylem Wasom joins us from Warrnambool.
“Seeing a few boys return from last season is also great and shows we are building a really nice culture across both the AFL and VFL programs.”
Five current Youi Brisbane Lions Academy members have been promoted to the VFL list following good form during the 2024 Coates Talent League and 2024 VFL season.
“It speaks volumes about our academy/VFL relationship, there's a number of guys that have been from our academy, then we'll get the newer crop who get their chance at VFL level.”
In other changes, Dan Annable will join the squad alongside fellow Youi Brisbane Lions Academy members Fergus McFayden, Wyatt Greenaway, Harrison Ronchi and Ryan Gilder demonstrating the strength of the Lions grassroots pathway.
Tahj Abberley, Jack Manly, Tristen Meekin, Brad McDonald and Ben Thomas all return from the 2024 list.
2025 VFL Recruits
Harry Arnold
Arnold rejoins the Lions program after spending the second half of 2023 and all of 2024 on the Sydney Swans AFL list.
A mid-season draftee in 2023, Arnold hails from Mackay, playing for Broadbeach prior to joining the Lions VFL side in 2021.
Standing at 194cm Arnold will bolster the Lions key defensive stocks this year.
Hayden Bertoli-Simmonds
A QAFL Stalwart, former Brisbane Lions NEAFL player and a 2024 QAFL Premiership player for Morningside, Bertoli-Simmonds is a welcome addition to Lions VFL list.
A strong bodied midfielder, Bertoli-Simmond who played for Redlands in the NEAFL and Williamstown in the VFL brings a wealth of experience is the Lions VFL group.
Charlie Offermans
A former College Basketball player Charlton Offermans has joined from the Lions VFL list for 2024.
Originally from Townsville, Offermans played for the Rockhurst Hawks in Kansas City, Missouri from 2017 to 2020, before moving back to Australia.
Offermans had been a part of the Suns Academy before heading to the United States, and for the last couple of years he has played for Labrador and the Brisbane Lions’ VFL team.
James Creighton
James Creighton returns to Queensland having played VFL for the GWS Giants across 2023/24 seasons as part of a strong footy journey stretching from Gold Coast to Melbourne.
Creighton, originally a Coomera Magpies Junior, played State footy for QLD as a junior before moving to Melbourne to attend Brighton Grammar where he was a member of the 1st XVIII, while also playing three years of Talent League footy for the Sandringham Dragons, including as a Premiership player in 2022.
Taylem Wason
Taylem Wason joins the Lions VFL list from Warrnambool Football Club as a playmaking defender.
Undertaking his first season at VFL level, Wason is an accurate left footer who is able find targets coming out of defence, a tough and courageous competitor, Wason will be a welcomed addition to the Lions VFL backline.
Wason recently won the Warrnambool’s Best and Fairest and was named in the Hampden League’s 2024 Team of the Year.
Curtis McCarthy
Curtis McCarthy joins the Lions VFL list off the back of a strong debut season for Noosa Tigers in the QAFL last season.
Having previously played VFL for Geelong between 2017 and 2019, McCarthy, brother of Lions forward Lincoln, will provide the VFL side with another key target up forward.
McCarthy booted nine goals across six games for the Tigers last season before returning to South Australia in the back of the season to player for Bordertown’s A Grade side kicking eight majors in five outings.
