Leadership Challenges for Brisbane Lions
Brisbane midfielder Jarrod Berry has voiced concerns about the performance of the Lions’ leadership group following a series of recent losses. The team currently stands at 6-6 in the middle of the season, two games and percentage points outside the top four. Several players are not performing to the standard they achieved during the back-to-back premiership years.
Berry emphasized that some members of the leadership group are prioritizing their roles as leaders over their responsibilities as footballers. “It’s one of those things that comes out of such a good place and that’s why we love them, but that’s going to turn because you make a few little adjustments, guys get on the back of that, their performance lifts and we’re fine,” he said.
He added, “No panic stations, it’s never as good, never as bad as it seems.”
Co-Captains and Leadership Group
Harris Andrews, Hugh McCluggage, and Josh Dunkley serve as co-captains, while Oscar Allen, Jarrod Berry, Cam Rayner, Jaspa Fletcher, and Will Ashcroft are part of the leadership group. Berry highlighted the importance of focusing on individual roles and executing them effectively.
“We learned this lesson at the start of 2024 – we were trying to be leaders before we were footballers and our most important asset to the team is performing and doing our own role well so knowing what your role is and executing that as well as possible.”
Upcoming Challenges
The Lions face another tough challenge against the Gold Coast Suns this weekend. As Berry pointed out, this is part of a difficult stretch of games against strong opponents.
In their recent matches against GWS and Fremantle, Brisbane showed resilience even when the game seemed to be decided. Berry noted this as a positive sign.
“I think you see that in the last quarter on the weekend. We played more our brand of football,” he added. “It’s really important we do take the positives away from that and it’s one of those things, I don’t think it’s a lack of effort, I think on the weekend we went the other way and tried too hard especially some of our leaders were trying to make an impact across the group to get that right.”
Rivalry and Opportunity
The Q Clash against the Suns is a significant rivalry for the Lions. Berry sees this as an opportunity to test themselves and improve.
“It’s another opportunity for us to test ourselves and improve.”
