The crater Chris Fagan will leave in Brisbane following his departure will be impossible to fill, especially after how he built the Lions from the depths of irrelevance to arguably the best team of the modern era.
Fagan secured a revered three-peat of premierships last week, but has admitted it was time to hang up the whistle, with a move to Melbourne to be closer to family on the cards.
But who is equipped to take over the Lions as they hunt for a historic four-peat?
There are a few names internally who have been floated, while a host of assistant coaches have been around the mark with previous coaching vacancies.
Brendon Lade
He interviewed for the Carlton role, was shortlisted for the Melbourne job, and was initially in the running for North Melbourne's position.
Lade has spent the past four seasons at the Western Bulldogs, with prior stints as an assistant at St Kilda, Port Adelaide and Richmond.
