Brisbane Lions rocked by key figure's departure to Adelaide after AFL premiership triumph
The Lions were hit with a double blow after the AFL premiership win.
The Lions have been hit with the second blow in 24 hours after long-serving assistant coach Murray Davis announced he's moving to the Adelaide Crows in 2025 only days after Brisbane won the AFL premiership. Superstar forward Joe Daniher called time on his career on Thursday having played his final game for the Lions in the win over the Sydney Swans in the AFL grand final.
And on Thursday, the Lions also confirmed Davis would be leaving to join Matthew Nicks at the Crows next year. Davis took charge of the Lions' excellent forward-line in 2024 and will be missed having been with the club for 13 years.
The Crows announced the deal and claimed Davis would be a huge asset for the club as they look to build after a brutal campaign. "Over the past couple of months, we have been evaluating and exploring ways in which we can fine-tune our coaching structure and been searching for someone to complement the strengths of Matthew and his assistants," Adelaide football boss Adam Kelly said in a club statement.
"Murray comes to us with a diverse range of football and coaching experiences, as well as detailed insights from a high-functioning and successful program at Brisbane. We have the utmost respect for what Brisbane have been able to do and the way in which they have gone about their business, and Murray has been a witness and contributor to their rise."
Lions football manager Danny Daly was full of praise for the departing Davis having claimed he played a "vital role" in the club moving from the bottom of the table to becoming premiers in 2024. The loss of David comes as a double blow for the Lions. On Thursday afternoon, Daniher confirmed reports he would be walking away from the final year of his contract to finish his career.
The forward kicked two goals in the victory and in a telling moment, roared to life after the second. Daniher is usually reserved with his celebrations, but the 30-year-old jumped up with pride in the fourth-quarter after his goal in front of the fans. His teammates swamped him after the goal in a telling moment for the forward.
And the goal is confirmed to be his last having walked away from the game on a high. Daniher played 204 games and kicked a whopping 395 goals throughout his career. Daniher joined the Lions from Essendon in 2020 after playing 108 games for the Bombers.
Murray Davis to join Adelaide Crows revolution
Davis will join Nick's coaching team after a season that finished in a letdown. Nicks joined Adelaide in 2020 and only narrowly missed the finals last year. However, the Crows did not start well in 2024 having slumped to four straight losses.
RELATED:
Sydney Swans boss makes telling call amid John Longmire speculation
Leigh Matthews rips AFL move that dudded Swans in grand final
Things didn't get too much better with the Crows finishing 15th, with eight wins and a draw. Regardless, he re-signed with Adelaide until the end of 2026. Adelaide are making moves in their coaching team as they attempt to lure Collingwood's former football boss Graham Wright to take charge of their program.