Player ratings from the 2026 AFL grand final

With minutes to go, Fremantle looked to have secured their first-ever AFL premiership. The Lions stopped them cold. Who soared and who flopped, on the AFL’s biggest stage?

AFLW premiership player Libby Birch rates every Brisbane Lions player, while former Geelong star Mathew Stokes runs his eye over every Docker.

Click on each player to reveal their mark out of 10, along with Birch and Stokes’ analysis.

THE COACHES:

Justin Longmuir:
With two minutes to go he was going to be Fremantle’s first ever premiership coach. It seems like he’s got a team that wants to play for him, and by playing the right way of footy. But a lack of on-field leaders once Alex Pearce went down hurt him. Longmuir should be very proud of what he’s done with the group. 8/10

Chris Fagan:
Continued to reshuffle a Brisbane Lions defence stretched by Fremantle’s varied forward line and found the changes required to inspire a remarkable final-quarter comeback. His experienced Lions again refused to accept defeat on the biggest stage; it’s a three-peat for the ages. 10/10