Courtesy of their victories in pulsating preliminary finals, the Brisbane Lions and Fremantle Dockers will face off in their first-ever AFL Grand Final encounter.
It's the Dockers' second appearance on the stage since their 1995 entry into the competition, while the Lions move into outright first for appearances since the turn of the century, competing in their eighth decider of the last 26 years.
The Lions prevailed in one of the greatest games the code has ever seen, defeating Hawthorn in a match that truly had everything. Big tackles, exquisite finishing, contested marks, manic pressure and controversial, brave umpiring.
Chris Fagan will be hoping for a more resolute defensive performance in his side's fourth consecutive grand final appearance, after they conceded a mammoth 122 points in their fabled victory.
The Dockers made life hard for themselves, relying on a near-perfect final stanza to pip the Sydney Swans, breaking the hearts of the under-siege Harbour City natives in the process.
The Dockers will be hoping for more out of their three-headed monster of a forward line, with Josh Treacy, Patrick Voss and Jye Amiss combining for a meagre 2.2 against an undermanned Swans outfit.
Will either of Fagan or Dockers coach Justin Longmuir swing the selection axe, and end a player's grand final dream in the process?
Will Lachie Neale be free to play?
Did any of Fremantle's WAFL premiership players do enough to earn the most unlikely of grand final recall?
All that and more, tackled below!
Fremantle Dockers
The Dockers made no changes to the side that vanquished Geelong in the semi-final, for their clash with Sydney in the preliminary final.
Sticking fat worked in that instance, but can more of the same be expected from Justin Longmuir and his selection panel?
Brandon Walker (ankle) and Nathan O'Driscoll (omitted) made their respective ways out of the side following Fremantle's first-up failure this September, and neither is likely to weasel their way back into the line-up.
O'Driscoll netted 22 disposals in WAFL-affiliate Peel Thunder's Grand Final victory over Claremont on the weekend, in his last chance to push his case.
Forgotten man Jeremy Sharp (27 disposals, seven inside 50s, one goal) was awarded the Simpson Medal as best afield in the Thunder's triumph - one of many AFL-listed players to push their case.
Sean Darcy continued to toil valiantly in the ruck, notching 30+ hitouts for the third consecutive game.
However, Mason Cox was more than serviceable in the preliminary final, clunking and kicking truly in a tense last quarter, enhancing a statline that already read 10 hitouts to advantage from 21 total hitouts - a true second ruck performance as pure and admirable as they come. Expect Darcy to miss again.
Fringe defender Brennan Cox was held over from that WAFL triumph, and he may be primed for a potential recall, with that last defensive spot likely to be a coin flip between him and journeyman Oscar McDonald, who was shaky at times in the preliminary final. However, he has runs on the board, playing a role with aplomb in the weeks preceding the Swans match.
This is how the minor premiers, chasing the first flag in club history, will likely line up:
B: Jordan Clark, Alex Pearce, Oscar McDonald
HB: Karl Worner, Judd McVee, Heath Chapman
C: Matthew Johnson, Andrew Brayshaw, Neil Erasmus
HF: Michael Frederick, Murphy Reid, Sam Switkowski
F: Jye Amiss, Josh Treacy, Patrick Voss
R: Luke Jackson, Caleb Serong, Shai Bolton
INT: Isaiah Dudley, Mason Cox, Hayden Young, Corey Wagner, Luke Ryan
Ins: Nil
Outs: Nil
Brisbane Lions
All eyes in the landscape will be on Lachie Neale's Tribunal hearing on Tuesday night.
Will a moment that was commonplace up until recently really see the champion rubbed out from the Grand Final? And not just any grand final - a grand final against the club of his drafting, that would also double as his farewell game, with his mooted move to a third club now viewed as merely a formality.
It would be a gargantuan blow for the Lions, and a devastating end to a glittering career in the River City for the modern great. A bitter end to a year that has already seen his public standing take a battering, even if his football remained customarily excellent, against conventional wisdom.
Noah Answerth missed the preliminary final - and the chance to renew his hostilities with the almost-match-winner Nick Watson - through an ankle injury. Albeit not a 'like for like' replacement, he would loom as the likely inclusion, if fit, and Neale was indeed rubbed out.
If Answerth does not pass a fitness test, and the Lions do indeed need to call someone up, the likes of Bruce Reville (18 senior games in 2026), luckless Lion Keidean Coleman (13), Jimmy Tunstill (11) and Lincoln McCarthy (eight) loom as the quartet likely to enjoy the most surprising of call-ups.
Darragh Joyce has been strong in the twos this year, earning a team of the year squad inclusion. If the Lions want an extra tall on Fremantle's three-headed monster (they likely won't), his is a lever that could be pulled.
Darcy Gardiner, under intense form scrutiny of late, had his colours lowered by Jack Gunston, but had moments of strength, too. Gunston is a tough match-up for most, which, coupled with Fagan's unflinching loyalty, will likely see the veteran hold his place.
However, this conjecture is likely futile, with Neale more likely than not to get off at the Tribunal, and to then take his place in the team, with a fairytale three-peat at his fingertips.
Is this the side to cap the most magnificent of three-peats come Saturday?
B: Ty Gallop, Harris Andrews, Ryan Lester
HB: Jaspa Fletcher, Darcy Gardiner, Dayne Zorko
C: Jarrod Berry, Hugh McCluggage, Zac Bailey
HF: Charlie Cameron, Logan Morris, Conor McKenna
F: Eric Hipwood, Cameron Rayner, Kai Lohmann
R: Sam Draper, Josh Dunkley, Lachie Neale
INT: Oscar Allen, Will Ashcroft, Levi Ashcroft, Darcy Fort, Darcy Wilmot
Ins: Nil
Outs: Nil
