BRISBANE coach Chris Fagan was full of praise for his injury-ravaged side that had to overcome challenges on and off the field to snatch a four-point victory against Sydney in the Grand Final rematch.
The Lions started life without retired spearhead Joe Daniher decimated by injury in their attack but still found a way to overrun the Swans with Zac Bailey booting four goals in Saturday's win.
SWANS v LIONS Full match coverage and stats
But the win could come at a heavy cost with defender Brandon Starcevich concussed for the third time in eight months after a collision with Swans midfielder Justin McInerney in the final term.
Starcevich had only just returned to playing after a concussion during the pre-season and this time sat on the turf looking distressed before running from the field and taking no further part in the game.
"It was one of our great wins today, I reckon as a group," Fagan said. "If you look back over what's happened over the last two weeks, we had an interrupted preparation for this game, obviously with the cyclone threat up in Brisbane.
"We lose Charlie (Cameron) before the game, Sam Day's dad passes away, and those two boys have been practicing in the forward line all summer, and then suddenly, two or three days out, they're not there. We lose Kai Lohmann early in the game and Starcevich in the last quarter."
Cameron was a late withdrawal due to calf tightness that Fagan said was merely a precaution, while Lohmann was subbed out in the opening term with an ankle injury.
Fagan had revealed during the week that father-son selection Levi Ashcroft would start his first game as the substitute before the 18-year-old was thrown into the starting 22 with Cameron sidelined.
The No.5 draft pick is unlikely to give up his spot easily after a dazzling debut as Ashcroft gathered 25 disposals with six score involvements, while his brother Will had 21 touches with eight clearances.
"It's a hot game to come in and play your first game, he contributed really well, he'll learn a lot from that opportunity," Fagan said about Levi.
"It's not a surprise that he went well but it's good that he did. He helped us win the game."
The Swans have now slumped to a 0-2 start in their first season under Dean Cox but with a midfield missing captain Callum Mills and young gun Errol Gulden.
The first-year coach was left frustrated that the Swans were beaten at the coalface when the game was on the line as the battle-hardened Lions won the contested ball count 157-131, even while James Jordon shut down dual Brownlow medallist Lachie Neale.
"(The Lions') ability as a collective, and that's not just through the middle part of the ground, but if you talk about their high half-forwards like (Cam) Rayner, they are really strong bodied players, and Zac Bailey," Cox said.
"We cut out one. I thought James Jordon did an unbelievable job on Lachie Neale, to keep him to 10 touches and two clearances is phenomenal.
"One thing that we're still aware of is that when we play our best footy, we're as good as any team in the comp. We've shown that against two of the best teams in the comp. We've just got to make sure that we do it for longer."
