As the Brisbane Lions prepare to celebrate the 10-Year Anniversary of going Back-to-Back-to-Back, lions.com.au remembers the Club's hat-trick of AFL premierships - each of which had a different story.

2001 - Underdogs overcome the 'Unbeatables'

The Brisbane Lions might have won 15 consecutive matches on their way to the 2001 AFL Grand Final, but they were still considered rank outsiders to dethrone a seemingly unbeatable Essendon outfit.

The ladder-leading Bombers were being tagged as the ‘best team ever’ having comprehensively won the previous year’s premiership, while the Lions were relatively ‘new boys’ who were driven by a sense of destiny and desire to write a new chapter of football history.

Many questioned how the Lions would handle such a big occasion, while others doubted their ability to perform on the AFL’s grandest stage, the MCG, on that last Saturday in September.   

On a hot day by Melbourne’s standards, the Lions proved dominant early, but wayward kicking opened the door for Essendon to take a 20-point lead early in the second term.

But the Lions soon gained confidence, and from every little victory grew in stature and started to take control of the match. 

They proceeded to kick 11 of the next 13 goals of the match to take a commanding six-goal lead in the final quarter, before a couple of late Bombers goals whittled the margin back to 26 points. 

Then, at precisely 5:13pm, the siren sounded with the ball fittingly in the hands of Alastair Lynch – the oldest member of the premiership side, and the player who had travelled down the longest and bumpiest road to glory.

Fellow veteran Shaun Hart, a born-and-bred Queenslander, would later prove a popular recipient of the Norm Smith Medal as the game’s best player.

The Lions had finally climbed football’s equivalent of Mount Everest to claim the AFL’s Holy Grail.

It was history in the making for a Club established just five years earlier by a merger between the Brisbane Bears and Fitzroy, being the first time the AFL Premiership Cup had travelled north of the Murray to a so-called ‘developing’ State.

Final Score
Brisbane Lions         15.18 (108)
Essendon                 12.10 (82)


2002 - Tough Lions slog it out

Good sides win one…but great sides win two.

The Brisbane Lions became regarded as one of the truly great sides when they defied the odds and the elements to post a character-filled nine-point win over Collingwood in the 2002 AFL Grand Final.

However, their journey towards a second straight premiership was in stark contrast to the previous year’s campaign.   

This time, the Lions were the established powerhouse of the competition, and went into the match as raging hot favourites against an up-and-coming Magpies outfit who had exceeded all expectations.

The Lions would have preferred a dry and fast track, but were instead greeted by howling winds and persistent rain on what proved to be one of Melbourne’s coldest September days.

They could have also done without losing Beau McDonald (shoulder) and Martin Pike (groin) for the match by the 17 minute-mark of the second term.

The conditions made for a bunfight. A dogfight. War in the trenches.

A low-scoring and tight contest ensued. The lead changed hands no less than 13 times, scores were level four times, and Collingwood led by four points 10 minutes into the last quarter.

It was Alastair Lynch who put the Lions ahead at the 13-minute mark of the final term, before Jason Akermanis famously kicked the sealer with a left-foot snap after brilliantly roving the ball from the front of the pack.

The Lions’ nine-point winning margin was the biggest of the game, and they had secured back-to-back flags despite kicking their equal lowest score for the season.

The hard fought win proved that the Lions were not only a brilliant free-flowing side, but had the willpower to succeed in any conditions.

Final Score
Brisbane Lions         10.15 (75)
Collingwood             9.12 (66)


2003 - Wounded Lions rise again

The Brisbane Lions elevated themselves to ‘immortal’ status by becoming the first team in almost 50 years to win three flags in a row.

The historic three-peat was considered even more remarkable given it was achieved for the first time in the modern AFL era, where salary caps and the draft system ensured greater equality across all clubs.  

One of the great quirks surrounding the crowning glory of arguably the greatest team in VFL/AFL history, however, was that they approached their third straight Grand Final as substantial underdogs.

The weight of expectation was firmly placed on opponents Collingwood, who had won 11 of their previous 12 games, and had only three weeks earlier defeated the Lions in the Qualifying Final at the MCG.

There was also a dark injury cloud that hung over the Gabba in the lead up to the match, with question marks hanging over the fitness of stars Nigel Lappin (ribs), Michael Voss (knee), Jonathan Brown (broken hand), Marcus Ashcroft (hip), and Chris Johnson (shoulder). And there were plenty of others.

But the wounded Lions were determined to show no weakness, and epitomised courage from the outset.   

It all started from the very first bounce when ruckman Clark Keating made an instant statement by rising high above Josh Fraser and smashing the ball forward. As Jonathan Brown was pole-axed by an unseen Scott Burns, Simon Black pounced on the ball and kicked it forward to Alastair Lynch who marked and goaled.

The Lions were away.

Collingwood, meanwhile, were well and truly caught on the back foot, their confidence shot by the Lions’ exquisite skills and fierce attack on the ball.

By half-time, the Lions had a 42-point lead and one hand on the Premiership Cup.

Even when the Magpies made one last surge, the Lions found another gear to shoot 12 goals clear midway through the final term, before cruising to a comfortable 50-point victory. The Lions had gone back-to-back-to-back.  

Midfielder Simon Black produced one of the great Grand Final performances of all time – his career-high 39 disposals earning him the 2003 Norm Smith Medal.

Final Score
Brisbane Lions         20.14 (134)
Collingwood            12.12 (84)