Christian Fagan (born 23 June 1961)[2] is an Australian rules football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach of the Brisbane Lions in the Australian Football League (AFL), where he won the premiership in 2024.[3] He spent his entire playing career in Tasmania, playing 263 senior games with Hobart, Sandy Bay, and Devonport. Before being appointed head coach of Brisbane in October 2016, Fagan had spent long periods as an assistant coach at Melbourne (1999–2007) and Hawthorn (2008–2016).
| Chris Fagan | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Fagan in December 2016 | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Christian Fagan | ||
| Nickname(s) | Fages | ||
| Date of birth | 23 June 1961 | ||
| Place of birth | Queenstown, Tasmania[1] | ||
| Height | 175 cm (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Brisbane Lions (head coach) | ||
| Coaching career3 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (W–L–D) | |
| 2017– | Brisbane Lions | 183 (106–76–1) | |
|
3 Coaching statistics correct as of round 21, 2024. | |||
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
Playing career
editFagan was born in Queenstown, Tasmania.[1] He played 263 senior games in the Tasmanian Australian National Football League (TANFL) and Tasmanian Football League (TFL) with Hobart, Sandy Bay and Devonport and kicked 430 goals in his career. He represented Tasmania on 11 occasions and played in two Premiership teams – Hobart in 1980 and Devonport in 1988.[4]
Coaching career
editTasmania
editFagan spent two years as an assistant coach at North Hobart before being appointed senior coach of Sandy Bay for 1993 and 1994. He was the inaugural coach of the Tassie Mariners from 1995 to 1997. He was the 181st person to be inducted into the Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame in 2007.[4]
Melbourne Football Club assistant coach (1999–2007)
editFagan was an assistant coach at the Melbourne Football Club under senior coach Neale Daniher between 1999 and 2007, during which the club reached the 2000 AFL Grand Final, where they lost to Essendon.[2]
Hawthorn Football Club assistant coach and general manager of football (2008–2016)
editHe served two roles at the Hawthorn Football Club between 2008 and 2016, where he was instrumental in the club's 2008, 2013, 2014 and 2015 premiership victories.[3] He was head of coaching and development between 2008 and mid-2013, while he was also the general manager of football alongside senior coach Alastair Clarkson between mid-2013 and the end of 2016.[5]
Brisbane Lions senior coach (2017–present)
editOn 4 October 2016, Fagan was appointed as the senior coach of the Brisbane Lions, replacing Justin Leppitsch.[6] He took the Lions to the finals in his third season as coach and was subsequently honoured by the AFL Coaches Association with the 2019 Allan Jeans Senior Coach of the Year Award,[7] although the Lions lost both their home qualifying and semi-finals to Richmond and Greater Western Sydney. He led the Lions to the finals in the subsequent 2020, 2021 and 2022 seasons. But did not reach the grand final in any of those seasons, falling short in two preliminary finals defeats to the Geelong Cats, and a semi-final defeat to the Western Bulldogs in 2021.[8]
On 1 March 2023, the Brisbane Lions announced that Fagan had signed a contract extension that would keep him at the club until the 2025 season. In the 2023 season, Fagan led a successful finals campaign that saw the Brisbane Lions advance to the 2023 Grand Final against Collingwood, which they lost by four points.[9][10]
In the 2024 season, after staging the second highest finals comeback against Greater Western Sydney in the semi-final, coming back from 44 points down. Fagan coached the Brisbane Lions to the 2024 Grand Final, where they defeated Sydney Swans by 60 points to win the premiership. He was the third winning VFL/AFL premiership coach to have never played in the league, as well as the oldest coach to feature in a grand final at 63.[11][12][13][14][15][16]
In September 2024, his contract was extended again, until the end of the 2026 season.[17]
Head coaching record
edit| Team | Year | Home and Away Season | Finals | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Drew | Win % | Position | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| BRI | 2017 | 5 | 17 | 0 | .227 | 18th out of 18 | — | — | — | — |
| BRI | 2018 | 5 | 17 | 0 | .227 | 15th out of 18 | — | — | — | — |
| BRI | 2019 | 16 | 6 | 0 | .727 | 2nd out of 18 | 0 | 2 | .000 | Lost to GWS in Semi Final |
| BRI | 2020 | 14 | 3 | 0 | .824 | 2nd out of 18 | 1 | 1 | .500 | Lost to Geelong in Preliminary Final |
| BRI | 2021 | 15 | 7 | 0 | .682 | 4th out of 18 | 0 | 2 | .000 | Lost to Western Bulldogs in Semi Final |
| BRI | 2022 | 15 | 7 | 0 | .682 | 6th out of 18 | 2 | 1 | .667 | Lost to Geelong in Preliminary Final |
| BRI | 2023 | 17 | 6 | 0 | .739 | 2nd out of 18 | 2 | 1 | .667 | Lost to Collingwood in Grand Final |
| BRI | 2024 | 14 | 8 | 1 | .609 | 5th out of 18 | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | Defeated Sydney in Grand Final |
| Total | 101 | 71 | 1 | .587 | 9 | 7 | .563 | |||
Honours and achievements
editPlaying honours
editTeam
Individual
- Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame (2007 Inductee)
Coaching honours
editIndividual
- 2 x AFLCA Allan Jeans Senior Coach of the Year Award: 2019, 2024
- 2024 Brisbane Lions Premiership Coach
References
edit
- ^ a b "12 things you didn't know about new Brisbane Lions coach Chris Fagan". Herald Sun. News Corp Australia. 4 October 2016. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
- ^ a b "AFL Coaches Association – Chris Fagan profile". AFL Coaches Association. Fox Sports Pulse. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
- ^ a b Schmook, Nathan (3 October 2016). "EXCLUSIVE: Lions to appoint Chris Fagan as coach". AFL.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
- ^ a b "181. Chris Fagan | AFL Tasmania Hall of Fame".
- ^ Salemme, Kate (29 September 2016). "Sam Mitchell says Hawthorn football boss Chris Fagan brings stability, would be valuable to Lions". Herald Sun. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 3 October 2016. In September 2022, following his departure from the club, he was alleged to have been involved in the isolation and separation of Indigenous players from their partners and families, allegations which came to light as part of an external review into historical racism commissioned by Hawthorn.
- ^ "Brisbane Lions name Chris Fagan as Justin Leppitsch's replacement as head AFL coach". ABC News. 4 October 2016. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
- ^ Beveridge, Riley. "Five wins one year, 16 the next? That's Coach of the Year stuff". AFL.com.au. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
- ^ "Six finals, one win: What Lions' latest straight-sets exit means". AFL. 9 September 2021. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
- ^ "Lions extend coach's contract, reveal two new captains ahead of 2023 season". Fox Sports. 1 March 2023.
- ^ "Sweet 16: Magpies outlast Lions in thrilling Grand Final". AFL. 30 September 2023.
- ^ Laughton, Max (28 September 2024). "V/AFL premiership coaches who didn't play a V/AFL game". Twitter. Archived from the original on 29 September 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
- ^ Smart, Nick (24 September 2023). "AFL Grand Final: What you need to know". The New Daily. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
- ^ "'He panicked': Star's brutal 'brain fade' will haunt Giants as AFL finals 'nightmare' sinks in". Fox Sports. 15 September 2024.
- ^ "Lion Kings: Fagan's heroes thrash Swans in GF shock". AFL. 28 September 2024.
- ^ "AFL grand final 2024: Brisbane Lions dominate Sydney Swans to win first premiership since 2003 with 60-point victory". ABC News. 28 September 2024. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
- ^ Lemon, Geoff; Pegan, Martin; Lemon (Later), Geoff; Pegan (Earlier), Martin (28 September 2024). "AFL grand final 2024: Brisbane Lions defeat Sydney Swans – as it happened". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
- ^ "'Insiders are really confident': Lions coach rewarded with early contract extension". Fox Sports. 12 September 2024.
- ^ "AFL Tables – Chris Fagan – Coaching Record". afltables.com. Retrieved 22 December 2022.