Tables turn and Lyons’ loving it
JARRYD Lyons has a message for any Victorians whingeing about the Brisbane Lions and Gold Coast Suns having an unfair advantage from playing more games at home this season.
“What goes around, comes around I say,” the Lions midfielder said.
With Queensland this year’s home of the AFL due to the COVID-19 crisis in Victoria, the Lions and Suns are set to play the majority of their matches on home soil.
Both clubs are already revelling in the situation. The Lions are flying high in second spot on the ladder and the plucky Suns are punching above their weight, winning four of their seven matches.
And for Lyons, who has played for both clubs, it isn’t before time that the Queensland teams are enjoying some luxuries usually afforded to sides from Melbourne.
“Victorian teams travel five or six times a year if they’re lucky,” he said. “We travel every second week … so it’s great for Queensland footy in general to bring the sport back to front of minds with a lot of Queenslanders.
“It’s great to see the young kids getting around in Lions and Suns guernseys now and kicking AFL balls at the park. It’s really exciting for footy in general.”
Now a key factor in the Lions’ premiership push, Lyons still has a soft spot for the often-maligned Suns, for whom he made 37 appearances in two seasons before his move to Brisbane last year.
“I’ve got a lot of great mates at the club still and it is exciting to see them going well,” he said. “There are guys there that have been through a lot of heartache, for a lot of years.”
Lyons returns to his former home ground on Sunday when the Lions meet the Demons at Gold Coast venue Metricon Stadium.