Brisbane Lions superstar Joe Daniher poised to make HUGE announcement after AFL grand final
- Lions take on Sydney Swans in AFL decider
- Both sides have points to prove after losing previous grand finals
- A win could be enough for the champion striker to end it all
A premiership victory could spell the end of Brisbane Lions star Joe Daniher’s playing career, with the forward considering retirement after the AFL grand final.
Daniher scored three goals against Collingwood in last year’s decider and is expected to be a key target again as the Lions look to avenge that loss to the Sydney Swans at the MCG.
The 30-year-old has struggled with injuries this season and Channel 7’s Mitch Cleary has posted on social media that he is considering a shock retirement.
“Brisbane’s Joe Daniher is considering his AFL future after tomorrow’s grand final,” Cleary wrote on X.
‘It is understood the 30-year-old has spoken to those close to him about whether he will play in 2025. Daniher is under contract for next year.’
Daniher started his AFL career playing for the Essendon Football Club from 2013 to 2020. He was recruited under the father-son rule as the tenth overall pick in the 2012 national draft.
Daniher played 108 games for Essendon and scored 191 goals. He moved to the Brisbane Lions as a free agent in 2021.
Joe Daniher felt the sting of the 2023 grand final loss to Collingwood after scoring three goals in the AFL decider
Although Daniher is only 30, his body is battered and he has struggled with injuries this year
Daniher was selected in the All-Australian team in 2017. He won the Crichton Medal in 2017 and was Essendon’s leading goalkeeper from 2014 to 2017. He also won the AFL Mark of the Year award in 2017.
He has suffered significant injuries throughout his career, most notably missing most of the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Daniher also scored a crucial goal in Brisbane’s elimination final win against Richmond in 2022.
He has scored 202 goals in 95 games for Brisbane, including four in the stunning come-from-behind win over GWS in the semi-final two weeks ago.
Lions coach Chris Fagan said Daniher would like to win an AFL flag with Brisbane before ending his career
Lions coach Chris Fagan is in a telling sign that Daniher may be considering retirement with a grand final win named the forward alongside his 35-year-old teammate Dayne Zorko as players desperate to win a flag before retiring.
“I know they’re desperate to come back and have another crack,” he said.
‘There is still a long way to go before we can do that. Next week we play Geelong, a damn good football club and team, who taught us in a preliminary final a few years ago.
‘But I have no doubt that that drives them.
“I look at Dayne Zorko and it drives him, you know he’s 35. He doesn’t know how many years he has left to play the game and he desperately wants to win one.
“I think that’s what drove the group. Joey Daniher is the same. The guys on our team who are a little older stepped up that last quarter.”