Round 18 1992. It was a memorable day in football, and not just because the Brisbane Bears and the Fitzroy, future merger partners, played at Princes Park in Melbourne. It saw the start of one great career as fans of both clubs bid farewell to another.

Michael Voss, later to become Brisbane’s triple premiership captain, made a stunning AFL debut as Matt Rendell, Fitzroy’s last finals captain, played for the Bears in his only game against Fitzroy.

That the Bears won 114 - 73 was a side matter. It was a day all about individuals. A 17-year-old tyro bursting onto a scene he would dominate for the next 15 years, and a 33-year-old who had dominated for a decade.

Voss, only 11 days beyond his 17^th birthday, had a team-high 26 possessions playing on the wing as the young Bears snapped a horrific 13-game interstate losing streak.

Not since Round 11 1991 had they won away from home and their average losing margin during this run was 72 points. And it wasn’t as if Fitzroy were a poor side. They sat 9^th on the ladder and were right in the mix for the top six.

 

But it was like the ‘kid’, fresh from a standout performance as Queensland captain at the Teal Cup (Under 18) carnival and wearing jumper #56, brought an entirely new energy and enthusiasm. And it quickly spread through the team.

They led by 27 points at halftime and then 39 points at three-quarter time. And, as if to stamp a special mark of authority on the day, they made it 41 points at the final siren. It was the club’s 32^nd win.

Voss played on Fitzroy 131-gamer John Blakey, later an assistant coach with the Brisbane Lions from 2003-06.

As the 359-game Fitzroy and North Melbourne champion has been told more times than he will care to count, while Voss tore up the Princes Park wing with his 26 possessions, Blakey had just four possessions.

It was the beginning of the end for the ever-popular Blakey at Fitzroy. He moved to North in 1993. But as has been quipped many times, he left having given Voss the early confidence to become a champion.

Voss’ first game wasn’t Rendell’s last. After his first and only game against Fitzroy, he would finish the season before finally calling time on a 177-game career from 1981-92 in which he won the Fitzroy B&F in 1982-83 and captained the club from 1985-87, including their last three finals in 1986.

The 200cm ruckman/full forward had finished at Fitzroy in 1991 but agreed to play on with the Bears under Robert Walls, who had been his first coach at Fitzroy.

“Things hadn’t ended well at Fitzroy. I thought I could play on but Shawry (coach Robert Shaw) thought otherwise. I probably wouldn’t have gone to Brisbane if anyone other than Wallsy had asked but I loved every minute of it. There was a lot of talent and a lot of good people and you could just tell good things were coming. I’m so pleased I did it.”

Rendell's presence among the young group was invaluable. He played 13 games for three wins, 151 possessions and seven goals, and did a lot of teaching.

Rendell’s other strong memory from the Bears’ win was the performance of Rod Owen. A teenage prodigy, he’d had his ups and downs after debuting for the Saints at 16 years 54 days.

Owen kicked a career-best eight goals and finished with 8-6. “He was just too good that day – he played on Lynchy (Alastair Lynch) and they had to move him at three-quarter time,” Rendell remembered.

That in itself was special. Lynch, 24 at the time and playing his 94^th game, was the 1993 All-Australian fullback before his move to Brisbane in 1994.

But Owen had to be content with two Brownlow Medal votes. Three votes went to 23-year-old Queenslander Troy Clarke in his 27^th game. It was the first of three three-vote ratings Clarke, originally from Cairns, received in a 68-game career that led to a key development role in Queensland football before his sad passing at 44 in 2013 after a heart attack.

Rendell’s career would end at Round 22 when the Bears played Footscray at Whitten Oval. Walls invited him to speak to the playing group before his last game and he joked that he wished he was 30 not 33 because he would have loved to keep playing.

1991 – A Win for ‘Wallsy’

Twelve months before Michael Voss’ unforgettable debut the Bears had a big day against Carlton at Carrara in Round 1991 and delivered a special win for first-year coach and Carlton icon Robert Walls.

The Bears had lost to Carlton by 57 points at Princes Park in Round 3 and were 14^th on the 15-team ladder when they hosted the 10^th-placed Blues.

When the Bears trailed by 17 points at quarter-time the chances of Walls getting a win over his old club were minimal, but with Michael McLean putting on a masterclass in the midfield and Roger Merrett proving a dominant target up forward home side hit back.

They cut the deficit to two points at halftime, were 25 points up at three quarter-time, and despite a late rally from Carlton they hung on to win 100 - 93.

While McLean was rated the club’s best with his 36 possessions, Merrett’s five goals earned him three Brownlow Medal votes while David Cameron picked up two votes for 23 possessions and a goal. Brad Hardie and Cameron O’Brien kicked three goals.

1997 - Seven for Bradshaw

Daniel Bradshaw was the saving grace for the old Brisbane Bears to come out of the 1995 AFL Draft.

He’d debuted in Round 18 1996, becoming the 143^rd and last player on the all-time Bears playing list. After three games in his inaugural season he had to wait until Round 8 for his next chance in ’97 but quickly stamped himself as a player of the future.

He opened with bags of four and eight goals in Rounds 8-9 and in Round 18, as the Lions played Hawthorn at the Gabba, he took the Hawks for eight goals in a 70-point Brisbane win.

In his 14^th game he kicked 7-1 for two Brownlow votes. Only one Brisbane before him or since was quicker to an eight-goal bag for the club – former #1 draft pick John Hutton kicked eight goals in his sixth game. For comparison purposes, Jonathan Brown was 94 games before he kicked his first bag of eight.

2019 – Double Century for Rich

Daniel Rich had quickly established himself as a Brisbane favorite after being drafted with pick #7 in the 2008 Draft. In his first season he’d won the AFL Rising Star Award and the AFLPA Best First-Year Player Award and finished 6^th in the Merrett/Murray Medal.

That was no surprise. Even before he was drafted he’d played in two WAFL premiership sides with Subiaco and won All-Australian Under 18 selection in 2007-08. But most pleasing for the club was his loyalty. Although living on the opposite side of the country to his family, he was rock solid.

He lived through the horrors of the go-home five of 2013, when early draft picks Elliot Yeo, Sam Docherty, Billy Longer, Jared Polec and Patrick Karnezis quit the club to go home, so when Rich played his 200^th AFL game in Round 2019 it was a special moment.

Brisbane were 3^rd on the ladder when they hosted 12th-placed North Melbourne at the Gabba, but when North took a 4-point lead into 3 quarter time things weren’t looking especially rosy. 

Fittingly, Rich put Brisbane in front with a 55m boomer after he’d marked a clearing kick from North ruckman Todd Goldstein. But North responded immediately when Tarryn Thomas snapped truly from point-blank range. Twenty-eight minutes played in the last.

Noah Answerth kicked long for the Lions to Oscar McInerney coming out of the goalsquare. Scott Thompson was pinged for interference and big Oscar made no mistake from 20m. Brisbane back in front, but there was still time.

Brisbane won the all-important clearance and with 35 seconds to play Hugh McCluggage went towards a leading McInerney. Thompson made the spoil but McCluggage, following up brilliantly, gathered and was caught high. It was over. The Lions players ran to embrace Rich before McCluggage calmly put the free kick over the goal umpire’s head for a 87 - 75 win.

Rich was the 18^th player to play 200 Brisbane games. His career win count at that point of 69 was a club low, equal with that of Marcus Ashcroft, and further proof of his commitment to the club. And, more importantly, his 200-game possession count of 3951 was fourth best at the time behind only Simon Black (4575), Michael Voss (4243) and Luke Power (3969). Since then Dayne Zorko (4242) has gone past him.

2014 – A Stats Feast

Only seven players in Brisbane history have had 40 possessions in a game. Tom Rockliff did so eight times and Lachie Neale has five, with Dayne Beams (3), David Bain (2), Pearce Hanley (1), Michael McLean (1) and Luke Power (1). But only once have two Brisbane had 40+ in the same game.

It was Round 18 2014 when the Lions put their State pride on the line against the Gold Coast Suns at the Gabba. They’d been beaten by the Suns by 53 points at Metricon Stadium in Round 3 and sat 17^th on the ladder at, while the Suns were 9^th but still coming to grips with a season-ending injury to Gary Ablet.

Regardless of Ablett’s absence, it was time for a Brisbane redemption, and Rockliff and Hanley led the way superbly.

The midfield pair had the ball on a string early and kicked the sixth and seventh goals of the first quarter as the home side took an early command and led by 50 points by half-time.

The stats sheet showed Brisbane had 399 possessions overall to the Gold Coast’s 272, and Rockliff (47) and Hanley (45) had more than half the visitors’ team. Add Dayne Zorko’s 32 possessions and the Lions trio had more than half the Suns total.

And the Fitzroy 40 Club? Garry Wilson holds the club record of 45 possessions against Collingwood at Waverley in 1978 and had four games of 40+. Others to top 40 after statistics were introduced in 1965 were Mathew Armstrong (2), John Murphy, Brendan McCormack, Simon Atkins, Graeme Allan and Jason Baldwin.