Latest news with #WillAshcroft
News.com.au
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Lions captain's ‘extraordinary comment' clips rising star teammate
Lachie Neale's 'extraordinary comments' about Brisbane Lions rising star Will Ashcroft have caused a stir after the club's big win over Hawthorn. The dual Brownlow Medal-winner on Monday appeared to drop a subtle reality check for the former No. 1 draft pick. Speaking on SEN Breakfast during a 15-minute interview about the club's return to form, Neale said Ashcroft is far from a finished product at the age of 21. FOX FOOTY, available on Kayo Sports, is the only place to watch every match of every round in the 2025 Toyota AFL Premiership Season LIVE in 4K, with no ad-breaks during play. New to Kayo? Get your first month for just $1. Limited-time offer. 'I've seen some pretty professional blokes, and he's still working on his body and what he needs to do to get to that top echelon,' Neale said when asked about Ashcroft's professionalism. 'But he's still learning though and he's got a little way to go to be the most professional, but I think the way he handles himself is first-class.' Ashcroft, who won the Norm Smith medal during the Lions' Grand Final thumping of the Swans, is continuing to emerge as one of the club's biggest stars, but has shown hot and cold form this season. It's why Neale's comments caught the eye of veteran football reporter Caroline Wilson. Wilson on Channel 7's Agenda Setters said Neale's comment was a 'bit of a clip' for Ashcroft. 'Could we have a quick listen to the Brownlow medallist, Lachie Neale, and some extraordinary comments — well, it pricked up my ears anyway,' she said. 'I thought that was a bit of a clip and really fascinating. 'He's got a lot of work to do, clearly.' The Lions showed they are still among the teams to beat in 2025 with a big win over the Hawks in Round 11. Small forwards Charlie Cameron and Callum Ah Chee were stand outs in kicking seven goals between them. Neale said it had been up to the team's midfield to bring the dangerous forwards back into the game in recent weeks. The Lions went into the Hawks clash having kicked just 32 goals in their past three games. After a surprise loss to the Demons and a draw with North Melbourne, the pressure was on the Lions — and they delivered. Neale said before the big win over the Hawks that the club was not at panic stations. 'Maybe it's in our heads a little bit, so we've got to release the shackles a bit,' he said. 'We've been through far worse periods than this, so we're not panicking. 'It's a really long year, it's 24 weeks if you include the bye, and I think we learned some pretty good lessons last year that if you can find form at the right time, things can change quickly and your fortunes can change. 'Even Gold Coast we played pretty well against them, they would've been disappointed with the way they played … then you look at their next two weeks. 'We feel like if we can connect a bit better and our hunt and pressure around the ball improves then we can bounce back really quickly.'
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Cameron, Lions mids flex to continue QClash dominance
Charlie Cameron has burst to life as the Brisbane Lions shot to the top of the AFL ladder and put Gold Coast in their place in a lopsided QClash. The Suns entered 5-1, sitting third with ambition to prove their mettle against the reigning premiers. But, in driving rain and after a hard-fought first half, the Lions' midfield dominated the clearances and their small forwards profited in a 9.12 (66) to 7.7 (49) Sunday night Gabba win. Lions coach Chris Fagan was thrilled with how his side shut down the Suns' strong midfield and restricted their free-flowing attack as he declared: "We knew tonight we were probably facing the best Gold Coast team we've ever faced." Three late goals flattered the Suns and helped them narrowly avoid their lowest score in 28 meetings as a QClash record crowd of 33,612 gathered to watch the Lions' 12th win from these teams' past 13 meetings. Charlie got a great sit 🛫#AFLLionsSuns — AFL (@AFL) May 4, 2025 Lachie Neale, Will Ashcroft and Hugh McCluggage had 27 of the Lions' 47 clearances, while the Suns mustered just 28 in total. With 34 disposals, Will Ashcroft won the medal for best afield in a QClash, named in honour of his father, former Lions star Marcus. Josh Dunkley kept Matt Rowell quiet to complete the Lions' midfield masterclass. Cameron (three goals) hadn't kicked a goal in three games but had two in as many minutes in the second term thanks to some quick footwork and a handy grubber off the deck. He missed two snaps he would usually swallow up but marked strongly and moved well to look back to his threatening best after a quiet start to the season. Fagan hailed Cameron, who had also kicked 0.4 last week in their big victory against St Kilda. "I sort of knew once he'd kick one he'd kick a few more," said Fagan. "He's been working away ... a bit flat by his performances but tonight in probably our biggest game for the year he produced and that's no surprise." The margin had been just 11 points at halftime and the Suns looked ripe to push the Lions. But they wasted opportunities with long bombs into the Lions' defensive zone, easily picked off by Harris Andrews, who repelled and allowed Cameron and Callum Ah Chee (three goals) to prosper. A 12-clearance difference in the third term was the biggest for the Suns since 2019 and led to a five-goals-to-one quarter that ended the fight. The Lions (7-1), wearing their inaugural 1987 Brisbane Bears guernsey in a retro throwback, jumped to first after Collingwood's loss to Geelong on Saturday. Former Suns forward Sam Day had a forgettable night against his old team, subbed out with a hamstring injury in the first quarter. Lachie Weller (hamstring) was also an early casualty for the Suns. Bailey Humphrey added a quirky chapter to the QClash's history book, gifting Jarrod Berry a goal after his bizarre antics on the mark gave away a 50 metre penalty. Berry, kicking after the siren, hadn't made the distance from outside the arc but got another chance from the top of the goal square after Humphrey had grabbed a handful of turf and under-armed it towards him as he kicked for goal. It was the Lions' only goal in a hotly-contested first quarter. Coleman Medal leader Ben King was well held by the returning Jack Payne, and was unable to get a touch until kicking his first goal in the third quarter. Suns' coach Damien Hardwick could only tip his cap to the Lions. "You get taught a lesson … they're humming at the moment," he said. "We couldn't control the midfield battle at all. "We know the answers, it's a pretty easy analysis."
West Australian
04-05-2025
- Sport
- West Australian
Cameron, Lions mids flex to continue QClash dominance
Charlie Cameron has burst to life as the Brisbane Lions shot to the top of the AFL ladder and put Gold Coast in their place in a lopsided QClash. The Suns entered 5-1, sitting third with ambition to prove their mettle against the reigning premiers. But, in driving rain and after a hard-fought first half, the Lions' midfield dominated the clearances and their small forwards profited in a 9.12 (66) to 7.7 (49) Sunday night Gabba win. Three late goals flattered the Suns and helped them narrowly avoid their lowest score in 28 meetings as a QClash record crowd of 33,612 gathered to watch the Lions' 12th win from these teams' past 13 meetings. Lachie Neale, Will Ashcroft and Hugh McCluggage had 27 of the Lions' 47 clearances, while the Suns mustered just 28 in total. With 34 disposals, Will Ashcroft won the medal for best afield in a QClash, named in honour of his father, former Lions star Marcus. Josh Dunkley kept Matt Rowell quiet to complete the Lions' midfield masterclass. Cameron (three goals) hadn't kicked a goal in three games but had two in as many minutes in the second term thanks to some quick footwork and a handy grubber off the deck. He missed two snaps he would usually swallow up but marked strongly and moved well to look back to his threatening best after a quiet start to the season. The margin was just 11 points at halftime and the Suns looked ripe to push the Lions after halting the hosts' momentum and getting forward themselves. But they wasted opportunities with long bombs into the Lions' defensive zone, easily picked off by Harris Andrews, who repelled and allowed Cameron and Callum Ah Chee (three goals) to prosper. A 12-clearance difference in the third term was the biggest for the Suns since 2019 and led to a five-goals-to-one quarter that ended the fight. The Lions (7-1), wearing their inaugural 1987 Brisbane Bears guernsey in a retro throwback, jumped to first after Collingwood's loss to Geelong on Saturday. Former Suns forward Sam Day had a forgettable night against his old team, subbed out with a hamstring injury in the first quarter. Lachie Weller (hamstring) was also an early casualty for the Suns. Bailey Humphrey added a quirky chapter to the QClash's history book, gifting Jarrod Berry a goal after his bizarre antics on the mark gave away a 50 metre penalty. Berry, kicking after the siren, hadn't made the distance from outside the arc but got another chance from the top of the goal square after Humphrey had grabbed a handful of turf and under-armed it towards him as he kicked for goal. It was the Lions' only goal in a hotly-contested first quarter. Coleman Medal leader Ben King was well held by the returning Jack Payne, and was unable to get a touch until kicking his first goal in the third quarter.
Perth Now
04-05-2025
- Sport
- Perth Now
Cameron, Lions mids flex to continue QClash dominance
Charlie Cameron has burst to life as the Brisbane Lions shot to the top of the AFL ladder and put Gold Coast in their place in a lopsided QClash. The Suns entered 5-1, sitting third with ambition to prove their mettle against the reigning premiers. But, in driving rain and after a hard-fought first half, the Lions' midfield dominated the clearances and their small forwards profited in a 9.12 (66) to 7.7 (49) Sunday night Gabba win. Three late goals flattered the Suns and helped them narrowly avoid their lowest score in 28 meetings as a QClash record crowd of 33,612 gathered to watch the Lions' 12th win from these teams' past 13 meetings. Charlie got a great sit 🛫#AFLLionsSuns AFL (@AFL) May 4, 2025 Lachie Neale, Will Ashcroft and Hugh McCluggage had 27 of the Lions' 47 clearances, while the Suns mustered just 28 in total. With 34 disposals, Will Ashcroft won the medal for best afield in a QClash, named in honour of his father, former Lions star Marcus. Josh Dunkley kept Matt Rowell quiet to complete the Lions' midfield masterclass. Cameron (three goals) hadn't kicked a goal in three games but had two in as many minutes in the second term thanks to some quick footwork and a handy grubber off the deck. He missed two snaps he would usually swallow up but marked strongly and moved well to look back to his threatening best after a quiet start to the season. The margin was just 11 points at halftime and the Suns looked ripe to push the Lions after halting the hosts' momentum and getting forward themselves. But they wasted opportunities with long bombs into the Lions' defensive zone, easily picked off by Harris Andrews, who repelled and allowed Cameron and Callum Ah Chee (three goals) to prosper. A 12-clearance difference in the third term was the biggest for the Suns since 2019 and led to a five-goals-to-one quarter that ended the fight. The Lions (7-1), wearing their inaugural 1987 Brisbane Bears guernsey in a retro throwback, jumped to first after Collingwood's loss to Geelong on Saturday. Former Suns forward Sam Day had a forgettable night against his old team, subbed out with a hamstring injury in the first quarter. Lachie Weller (hamstring) was also an early casualty for the Suns. Bailey Humphrey added a quirky chapter to the QClash's history book, gifting Jarrod Berry a goal after his bizarre antics on the mark gave away a 50 metre penalty. Berry, kicking after the siren, hadn't made the distance from outside the arc but got another chance from the top of the goal square after Humphrey had grabbed a handful of turf and under-armed it towards him as he kicked for goal. It was the Lions' only goal in a hotly-contested first quarter. Coleman Medal leader Ben King was well held by the returning Jack Payne, and was unable to get a touch until kicking his first goal in the third quarter.
The Advertiser
29-04-2025
- Sport
- The Advertiser
Brotherly shove: Ashcrofts to play QClash 'on edge'
Will Ashcroft has promised to "jump in there and get amongst it" when the QClash inevitable fires up as he and brother Levi try to win the best-on-ground medal named after their father.
