By Todd Davey

The Brisbane Lions are the NEAFL champions after defeating their Eastern Conference counterparts the Queanbeyan Tigers by 69 points at Manuka Oval.

After a slow start it was the Tigers that drew first blood through Ben Klemke after a series of short passes inside 50, and his coach Kade Klemke nailed their second goal not long after with a classy snap around the body.

Queanbeyan dominated the opening ten minutes of the game through their hunt on the ball, but the Brisbane Lions did themselves no favours in front of goal, with captain Cheynee Stiller missing a shot from directly in front. 

The Lions were able to get on the scoreboard through Scott Clarke with a wonderful front and centre goal that seemed to spark the visitors into action, with ex-Hawthorn product Jordan Lisle coming to life, first dribbling the ball home to sensationally put Brisbane in front, then taking a strong pack mark and slotted the difficult shot to put the Lions up by nine points.

Again, the momentum swung violently, with Queanbeyan taking control of the ball through the middle, moving the ball efficiently through the middle with a stylish finish by small forward Brett Fruend, and when Tigers captain Ryan Quade converted the tight set shot from 45 metres out on the boundary, the Tigers retook the lead. 

Yet it was the Lions who took the lead with two late goals, both coming from free kicks. Callum Bartlett nailed his first of the afternoon after being taken high 30 metres out from goal, while Clarke nailed his second of the quarter after receiving a 50 metre penalty.

The Lions started the second quarter the way they finished the first, with Jordan Lisle kicking two goals in as many minutes to open the term, pushing the margin out to 20 points.

Recent Lions retiree Amon Buchanan was running rampant through the midfield, gathering possessions at will, but it was Lisle who was the standout player on the ground, kicking his fifth goal for the game five minutes into the second quarter. 

The Lions were threatening to run away with the game after controlling the ball for long periods of time, but a fortuitous forward entry courtesy of Steven Jolliffe gifted Ben Klemke his second goal of the game.

Yet again Brisbane answered quickly, first through Blake Gambale who snapped truly from 15 metres out and when Callum Bartlett added his second with a magnificent kick from an acute angle, the Lions had their tenth and the lead was out to 30 points.

The teams traded goals to close out the half, with the Lions taking a 32 point advantage into the main break.

The Tigers came out of the half time break with a renewed vigour but failed to find a target forward of centre capable of making an impact with James Kavanagh well held by Justin Clarke, but finally were able to break through after Kaine Stevens crumbed a marking contest at forward 50 and kicked truly. 

The Lions answered quickly again through Ben Fuller who was the beneficiary on the goal line after a long range shot by Jordan Lisle, kicking the ball of the ground after a frantic struggle in the goal square. 

The floodgates were threatening to open at Manuka with the Lions controlling the majority of possession, but a rare Queanbeyan entry into the forward 50 saw James Kavanagh open his account for the afternoon with an opportunistic goal from short range.

However, the Lions struck back through captain Cheynee Stiller with a great finish on the run from a slight angle, and when Jordan Lisle kicked his sixth goal after a free kick on the cusp of three quarter time, the game was seemingly over. 

The fourth quarter saw an arm-wrestle of sorts as the two teams traded blows to open the term. Gambale kicked the opening goal for the Lions, but Roy Jaques answered almost instantly down the other end in his final game for the club, bringing the margin back under 40 points.

With the sting gone out of contest you could have excused the Lions for slacking off, but the visitors continued to pile on the pain, with Jordan Lisle amongst the best on the field recording his eighth goal, and when Jack Fox nailed his first for the day the margin had suddenly pushed out beyond 50 points.

The tough Eastern Conference Grand Final started to show late in the last quarter as the Lions ran away from the Tigers, kicking eight goals to one in a bruising display. 

The Lions capped off a memorable afternoon with defender turned ruckman Sam Michael winning the Andrew Ireland medal for best afield in the Grand Final.