One month ago, a 15-minute patch of exhilarating football in the late third and early fourth quarters saw the Lions become the first non-Victorian side to go back-to-back since their own former selves in the early 2000s. And one month from now, the Roar Deal family will come together with Chris Fagan at Brisbane Powerhouse to keep the celebrations going.

The countdown to our sold out night with Fages is on, with November 28 due to be a night we’ll never forget. The following day - November 29 - might prove to be something similar, with the AFLW grand final now looking a realistic target for the Lions, following a statement win over the Demons at Brighton Homes Arena.

This week on the podcast:

-Which Lions player is Craig Starcevich pushing Mike to include in the AA team?

-Our player by player recap from the 2025 Premiership team continues

-We discover that there's an Aussie Rules competition in Finland

And much more!

Like parents sitting by the resort pool who get told that their toddler’s had a toilet emergency at the kids club, our time of basking has been rudely interrupted by the Adelaide Crows and a trade period saga that we’re all still struggling to get our heads around. Cal Ah Chee now finds himself in limbo, Crows fans are furious, and all we want is to enjoy the glow of back-to-back premierships in peace.

This week on the Roar Deal, we sit down to record following the end of the 2025 trade period, with the most heated trade saga the club has been involved in for many years emerging out of a surprise deadline day.

Also this week:

-What should Chris Fagan's Powerhouse walk-on song be this year?

-Our one-by-one breakdown of the 2025 Premiership side continues

-We preview a massive top-four AFLW clash against the Demons

And much more!

October used to be a month of desperately hoping for a big trade that could finally turn things around. That all feels a few lifetimes ago now, though, with October becoming the month of joy and celebration.

It’s been two weeks since the Lions went back to back, and the party is continuing here in the Roar Deal studios. Today on the podcast, we’re going to start our player-by-player rundown from the 2025 Premiership side, recounting our favourite memories from their seasons and their big moments on Grand Final day.

Also this week:

-The Lions move into the top 4 in the AFLW

-All the ticket information for our return to the Powerhouse with Fages

-Who should Mike's new favourite player be?

And much more!

Just over a week ago, the final siren sounded on the 2025 AFL Grand Final, cementing the legacy of this current Brisbane Lions group, their coach, and the club as a whole, as the Lions became the first side to 5 premierships in the 21st century. Following that perfect Saturday afternoon, it’s been a week full of replays and joy, as we all come to terms with an achievement that was beyond comprehension not that long ago.

This week on the Roar Deal, as we return to the Coorparoo studios for the first time since the 2025 flag was won, it’s time to begin another few months of basking in the golden light of back-to-back premierships.

Also this week:

-We’re headed back to the Powerhouse with Chris Fagan next month!

-The latest on the player movement space

-Dom’s marathon journey begins

And much more!

Welcome back to the promised land.

In one of the most remarkable Grand Final performances in recent history, the Lions have taken down perennial heavyweights Geelong in 24-minute blitz to go back to back and stamp their mark as a generational team. 

In this special in-depth podcast recorded in Mike’s hotel room the day after the 2025 Premiership was won, we recount our experiences of a Grand Final day we will never forget. 

Also this week:

-Why Fages wanted to borrow Mike’s pants 

-Dom’s moment with Joe Daniher’s parents  

-The marathon preparation begins 

And much more! 

The build-up to the 2025 AFL Grand Final continues in our live episode from Fitzroy's Royal Derby Hotel, joined by special guests Simon Black and Sam Graham!

When we walked out of the MCG on Grand Final Day in 2023 with broken hearts, we all feared that might have been our one chance with this group. Who would’ve thought back then the last week of September was about to become a semi-permanent fixture!

There are storylines everywhere out of the prelim. Hugh’s bounce back, Motty’s ascendency to elite status, Harris toying with the Magpies, Will Ashcroft making a statement about just who the real father-son gun is, and that’s before we even mention Ty Gallop. And now, our premiership defence now moves to its final stage: one more win, and this team writes themselves into the history books as one of the all-time greats.

This week on the podcast:

-The unbelievable form of Ty Gallop

-Our plans for Roar Deal Grand Final week events

-Dom's starting to get worried about the marathon

And much more!

Following a QClash domination in which the Lions looked anything but battered and weary, we’re through to our fourth consecutive prelim. There were many bleak days where the thought of seeing the Lions featuring on footy’s penultimate stage were nothing but sheer fantasy - now, remarkably, Saturday’s match will be the fifth prelim we’ve played in over the last six years. 

This week on the Roar Deal, all is well again as dreams of another visit to the promised land just start to look a little bit more real. 

Also this week:

-Why was Joe Daniher at Morningside Footy Club?

-Dom's deep fears of wizard hats on Grand Final Day

-Our tentative Grand Final week plans

And much more!

After a strong end to the home & away season, the whiplash that has defined 2025 has returned - and this one hurts more than all the others combined. Following the most disappointing finals effort the Lions have turned in since 2022’s Prelim, our hopes of another September to remember have suddenly nosedived.

The news of Lachie Neale & Eric Hipwood’s season ending injuries only sours things further, with the growing optimism of the last few weeks suddenly feeling a long way away. And now, in a scenario that has felt unthinkable for much of the last fifteen years, we find ourselves preparing for a knockout semi-final… against the Suns.

We’re the first reigning premier to make the finals since Melbourne in 2022, who found themselves up against a young, ambitious QLD side who knocked them out in straight sets away from home. Will history repeat itself this weekend, or will the good side of the whiplash work its magic again, resigning Damien Hardwick to the same fate he faced the last time he coached a knockout final at the Gabba in 2022?    

Also this week:

-Mike recaps a wild 48 hours in Perth covering the first Suns final

-Is it finally time to return to two tall forwards?

-The AFLW Lions are following the same script as the men

And much more!

A year ago, we lived the September of our dreams.

Jaspa on the run, Joe’s goal from the boundary, Motty’s mark in the middle, Cal’s goal to put us ahead, Cam Rayner sealing it on the left, and Hippy’s Aker tribute in the big dance - they are all the stuff of legend, and memories each of us will treasure for the rest of our lives.

Now, twelve months on, it’s time to write some more folklore. This Friday night, the premiership defence gets underway, with an enormous qualifying final against Geelong making up the first part of the climb back to the summit. We preview the fourth match-up against the Cats in September in the last five years, and with them holding a 2-1 record, we’re hoping to even the ledger.

Also this week:

-Dom celebrates Zac Bailey's All Australian selection (extensively)

-Could Jordan Ridley get to Brisbane in the trade period?

-Who is subbing in for Mike at the watch party?

And much more!

It’s been a rollercoaster of a home & away season, with an awful run of injuries, bizarrely bad Gabba form, and our biggest home & away loss since 2018, and yet somehow, despite all that, we’ve ended the season third with another finals match-up against the Cats booked in for next Friday night.

The back to back campaign is about to get a lot more serious, and it seems we’re as much a chance as anyone after a strong but inaccurate win against the Hawks. This week on the podcast, we take advantage of the pre-finals bye to look back on the year that has been, relishing in what Chris Fagan has called the best home & away season the club has had under his tenure.

Also this week:

-We're doing a watch party again for the Cats final!

-The Lions AFLW team have bounced back with a dominant win in the west

-Is Dom starting to regret his marathon pledge?

And much more!

The whiplash strikes again! This week though, it’s the good kind of shock, as the Lions dominate Freo over in the West to erase the pain of the Swans loss and make another statement to the competition. The formula seems straightforward enough: When our hopes are high, we’re disappointed. When our hopes are low, we’re elated.

It’s hard to know just what that means for the next six weeks, but at any rate, we’re now locked in for a seventh straight finals campaign - an achievement that eclipses even the dynasty Lions of the early 2000’s, and makes us the first reigning premier to make finals since 2022. The question now turns to what role we’ll play in that finals campaign.

There’s a world of difference between third and eighth, and yet it looks likely to be one or the other, with the margins tighter than ever at the top of the table. This week on the podcast, we preview Sunday night’s Hawthorn match-up, with the home & away season set to end with a bang as we look to eradicate our Gabba woes when it matters most.

Also this week:

-Mike has joined the AFLW All Australian panel

-Could ‘Two Tall Forwards’ be about to make a comeback?

-Dom isn’t emotionally ready for the wizard hats

And much more!

From a disappointing loss to the Gold Coast, to an extraordinary win against Collingwood, back to a disappointing loss against Sydney - it’s hard to know what to make of where things sit now.

Last week, we seemed set for top-two. Now, it’s going to be a battle just to make the top eight The mood is flat once again on the Roar Deal, with the highs of last week a distant memory now as season 2025 returns to its precarious position ahead of a must-win clash against Freo over in the west.

Also this week:

-We preview the opening of the 2025 AFLW season

-Who should Lions fans barrack for in the other games this weekend?

-Comparing the future prospects of Will and Levi

And much more!

Cancel the funeral - this season still well & truly has a pulse!

2025’s most shocking loss has been followed by 2025’s most extraordinary win, with the Collingwood MCG hoodoo broken in emphatic style as the Lions make a statement to the competition with September on the horizon. Our best seems once again to be the best, and the equation seems simple now: if we can play like that six more times, we’ll be the first non-Victorian side to win back-to-back AFL premierships since - well - us in the early 2000’s.

This week on the Roar Deal, the misery of late July is replaced by the excitement of early August, as we enjoy all that Saturday night was, and all the possibilities it opens up for the eight weeks ahead.

Also this week:

-David King’s weirdest moment with Fages yet

-The crystal ball’s stunning return to form

-Is it finally time for Tom Doedee?

And much more!

It’s been quite a while since we’ve sat down for an episode of the Roar Deal in full doom & gloom mode, but Saturday's crisis in Carrara has us not too far from that ballpark. It was our heaviest defeat since the 2022 Prelim Final loss to a red-hot Geelong side, and also our heaviest home & away defeat we’ve had since 2018.

It's also put Dom in a real mood this week on the podcast, with Mike doing his best to lift Dom out of the slump ahead of a season-shaping game against Collingwood this Saturday.

Also this week:

-Why Dom feels so much resentment to Damien Hardwick

-Is Murray Davis a senior coach in waiting?

-The worst footy-related birthday celebration of all time

And much more!

The Gabba crowd is back! During a tense finish against the Dogs on Friday night, the Lions faithful found our voice again to bring the boys home, and we couldn't be happier about it. 

Now, attention turns to the highest-stakes QClash yet, with the Lions needing a win to stay up the top of the ladder (and maybe even move within sight of top spot), while the Suns suddenly need to win to keep their finals hopes alive. 

Also this week:

-Could this be the most diverse top 8 in AFL history?

-The small defender dilemma 

-Dom's idea to revolutionise the Brownlow

And much more!

And now things get interesting! With the Carlton win behind us, the fixture ahead is starting to look a lot like an early dose of finals footy. The coming weeks hold matches against teams currently sitting in 9th, 5th, 1st, 10th, 8th, and 6th, with not one easy win among them.

It’s rare to be in mid-July with the prospect of the minor premiership and the possibility of missing finals altogether both remarkably still on the table. It’s going to be a sprint to the finish line this year, and it all begins with a Friday night blockbuster against a Dogs side who suddenly find themselves outside the top 8 and desperate for a win.

This week on the Roar Deal, we’ll be talking through the first Gabba prime time, premiership-shaping blockbuster since all the way back on Easter Thursday.

Also this week:

-Could a Suns home final be played at the Gabba?

-Mike Drop returns with Essendon’s fixturing firmly in Mike’s sights

-Dom's becoming self-conscious about his saying

And much more!

We’re back from the bye with another win, and finals are suddenly coming into focus. We’ve just got to get there first, though, with three more wins needed to guarantee another September run. And with the Bulldogs, Suns, Collingwood, Swans, Dockers and Hawks still to come, it’s far from guaranteed - but a win over the struggling Blues this Thursday would go a long way to shoring up a spot.

After taking a bit of a bye ourselves, the Roar Deal is back, fresh and reinvigorated for the second chapter of the 2025 season with an in-depth preview of Thursday's Carlton match and the countdown underway to our first watch party of the year.

Also this week:

-Is Zac an All Australian?

-Dom’s most outlandish bet yet

-A deep dive into the problems with the 2025 Gabba crowds

And much more!

Just when things were starting to look a little bit bleak, the Lions have pulled out their best performance for 2025 to demolish the 22-year Kardinia Park hoodoo and send us into the bye safely in second place.

This week on the podcast, we pause for a mid-season review, looking through all that has worked this year and what we'll need to do to make another run at September from here.

Also this week:

-Our thoughts on All Australian squad contenders

-What’s going on with Cal Ah Chee’s contract situation?

-Why Dom misses the days of Video Ezy & Blockbuster

And much more!

We've suffered two losses in a row for the first time in 2025, and this week on the podcast, our concern levels are starting to grow. The general sentiment has been that accuracy was the culprit once again, but Mike has found a few other stats that have us a little alarmed.

And we look ahead to our last stop before the mid-season bye - a trip to the one venue we haven’t conquered since 2003. Will this be the week that we start our run of form to another flag? Will the accuracy issues sort themselves out? And will this finally be the week that we leave Geelong with the four points?

Also this week:

-The crystal ball is officially on a streak

-Dom’s idea to revolutionise stadium seating

-More bizarre Lions-related music from the early 2000s

And much more!