Brisbane AFLW coach Craig Starcevich has backed the Lions to get themselves out of a “mini crisis” following a slow and injury-riddled start to the team’s 2026 campaign.
Heading into Saturday night’s clash against the GWS Giants at Brighton Homes Arena, the Lions have lost two of their three games this season, including a heavy 56-point away defeat against Melbourne last weekend.
Brisbane’s cause isn’t being helped by an injury list that currently includes Ally Anderson (hamstring), Ruby Svarc (concussion), Marlo Graham (concussion) and Neasa Dooley (collarbone), while the unavailable Courtney Hodder is yet to play this season.
“We always tell our group to be ready for the unexpected, and we’ve had a bit of that this year,” Starcevich said.
“Every year there are no guarantees.”
The Lions are no strangers to recovering from slow starts to seasons, with Starcevich confident of a similar resurgence, starting this weekend.
“We’d much rather be three-and-zip rather than chasing the game a little bit. It’s something we’ve done before, but it’s not preferable,” he said.
“It does make us hungry and desperate, which I like. If you have your team coming in with that attitude every week, that’s where you want them to be, but you’d much rather have a better win-loss record.”
Starcevich’s confidence has been forged by positive meetings he has had this week with team leaders.
“They’re strong and positive and terrific people, and I’m expecting them to lead us through this mini crisis and get us back on track again,” he said.
“We’re going to have to be right on our game. It’s really important for us that we get big support.”
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