‘Couldn’t pass judgement’: Lions coach tight-lipped on co-captain’s ‘accidental’ blow

Brisbane coach Chris Fagan was reluctant to comment on a blow to Western Bulldogs forward Arthur Jones’ face on Saturday night that could land Lions co-captain Harris Andrews in trouble at the AFL tribunal.

Jones was forced out of the game – won by the Bulldogs by five points at the Gabba – with concussion and a lump under his right eye after being struck by Andrews in the third quarter.

Having run behind Andrews, Jones was brought to the ground after a stray arm from Brisbane’s star defender caught him across the face in an incident certain to be looked at by the match review officer.

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“I haven’t seen it … that can be accidental,” Fagan said after his side’s loss.

“I haven’t had the benefit of a replay so I couldn’t pass judgement.”

Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge also said it was hard for him to comment on the incident because he had not seen a replay.

“I’d imagine that he’d probably miss a week, and hopefully he’s OK,” Beveridge said of Jones.

“He’s got a bit of a shiner, but he’s a tough kid. He’s hard boned, First Nations, strong-willed, he’s pointy, so it must have been a hard hit for him to be hurt.

“Hopefully he’s going to be fine.”

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An Andrews suspension would hurt the Lions, who have a tough encounter with the Swans at the SCG on Saturday night.

Another of Brisbane’s co-captains, Hugh McCluggage, also seems to be an unlikely starter against the Swans after his night ended in the first-quarter against the Bulldogs due to a calf injury.

However, Fagan said there were “no alarm bells” despite the Lions giving up a 26-point third-quarter lead to lose 16.15 (111) to 15.16 (106) in the first match of their latest premiership defence.

“I look at the stats … and against the Bulldogs, you want to win territory, we want territory, you want to win contested possession, we won contested possession, (and) clearances, we won by five,” the Lions mentor said.

“Our pressure was pretty good. We had 13 more inside 50s, but they were able to take the ball into their forward line, and 62 per cent of the time they were able to score. We were 49 per cent by comparison, so their efficiency going inside 50 definitely helped them win the game, and we weren’t as efficient as we had hoped to be.

“There were a lot of good things about the game that we set out to do at the start, that we ticked, but it was all about making the most of our chances, and they did that better than we did.”

Elsewhere, Beveridge said the thrilling Opening Round win over Brisbane was evidence that his team was “bridging the gap” when it comes to beating AFL heavyweights.

The Bulldogs also came close to winning in Brisbane last season, but a 10-point loss to the Lions was part of a frustrating run of outs Beveridge’s men had against teams that finished in the top-eight in 2025.

The GWS Giants were the only top-eight team that the Bulldogs managed to beat last season.

“In relevant terms, based on what they (the Lions) achieved last year, it is important for us (to beat Brisbane), but we’ve got a level of confidence, so we weren’t too far away from those better teams last year,” Beveridge said.

“That’s a good position to be in on the dawn of the season, and then in the transaction (on Saturday night), there was evidence that we’re maybe just bridging the gap a bit.

“As much as we’re really honest with what happened last year, and some of the things that we know we needed to be better at … it’s important that I don’t stay in the past and we all live in the now, and push ahead.”

Beveridge was proud of his players’ composure after Brisbane seemingly broke the game open with five successive goals to take a decisive lead during the third quarter.

He said his side’s ability to bounce back with the final two goals of the quarter through Sam Darcy and Bailey Williams was crucial to the final outcome of the contest.

“We’ve had these games throughout the course of last year where we’ve been in the game and then just for a patch of a quarter, and sometimes the third, we’ve just been tested, whether it’s a contest or in the skill and game sense side of the game, and that happened in the third quarter,” Beveridge said.

“Then we were able to get it in our front half and kick a couple of late goals, and it just showed us going into the three-quarter time break that if we get some supply again we can test them, we can challenge them, and that happened.

“This competition can really bite you at times, and when you’re playing last year’s premiers, it’s encouraging, but you never for a second think that ‘oh, we’re coming over the top of them’ because you know what they’re capable of.

“All I knew was that there was some persistence throughout our ranks. You never rest against anyone, but particularly not against the Lions.”