The recent rain in Queensland brought the Brisbane Lions playing group closer together and boosted the club’s already strong culture, coach Chris Fagan says.
Fagan revealed that the houses of some players flooded, and that their teammates were there to help pick up the pieces.
“We had a lot of rain up here in the last week and 3 or 4 of the players houses flooded,” he told Kane Cornes and Andrew Hayes on SEN SA Breakfast.
“I find out the next day that everybody else has turned up at the house to try and bail the water out and pick things up.
“It’s a strong and close-knit group.”
Brisbane’s jump from 15th to 2nd on the AFL ladder in 2019 surprised many, but the club’s straight-sets exit in the finals has left a sour taste in the mouths of the staff and players.
Fagan said he undertook a project during the off-season, interviewing storied senior sporting figures to find out what was behind their continuous success.
“I chatted with Mick Malthouse, Denis Pagan, Mick Malthouse, Darren Cahill, Frank Ponissi and Andrew Ireland just to find out from them what they thought the secret ingredient was,” he said.
“I always feel you can learn so much from people who have been involved in continuous success, so I put it down as my post-season project.
“I found it very interesting and very enlightening.”
The 58-year old said it’s important that he and his coaching staff are setting the standard of improvement for his players.
“If you want your players to continue to improve I think as a coach you have to show them you’re doing everything you can to improve as well,” he said.
“There’s nothing magical about it, it’s just about a group coming back, being focused, doing the work and understanding that next year is a different year with new memories to create and getting on with the job.”
Brisbane take on Port Adelaide in their first Marsh Community Series match on February 23.
Listen to Fagan on SEN SA Breakfast below: