Brisbane hold off Hawthorn by nine points to stay alive for three-peat

Brisbane Lions beat Hawthorn by nine points in Saturday's AFL preliminary final to keep their bid for three straight premierships alive.

The win sends the back-to-back premiers into another Grand Final. It was the first final between Hawthorn and the modern-day Brisbane Lions, according to The Guardian.

A preliminary final is simple. Win and you play for the flag in the Grand Final. Lose and your season ends on the spot.

Hawthorn had to chase. The Hawks fell 28 points behind Brisbane during the game before rallying late, per The Guardian. In footy, that is more than four goals. It takes clean ball use and nerve to claw back.

Small forward Nick Watson gave them both. He kicked six goals for Hawthorn, a big haul in any final. Small forwards live at the feet of taller targets. Watson kept presenting, kept snapping, kept Hawthorn in it.

The finish decided it. In the closing seconds, Hawthorn's Jarman Impey was tackled and penalised for failing to dispose of the ball properly. That is holding the ball. The umpire pays a free kick to the tackler, and Brisbane took it.

Brisbane held on by nine points, The Guardian reported in its match report on 19 September 2026. The report framed the result around Brisbane's pursuit of a three-peat.

Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell did not hide his disappointment. "This feeling is the pits," he said at the post-match press conference.

The game was played on the Saturday before 21 September 2026. Expert AFL analysis for The Guardian comes from Jonathan Horn.

What makes this stand out is the conversation that followed. The Guardian published analysis asking whether Hawthorn v Brisbane was the best game of Australian rules football ever played. That is a large claim in a sport with more than a century of finals.

For fans, this means a Grand Final with a clear storyline. Brisbane get their shot at three in a row. Hawthorn go to the off-season after a comeback that fell nine points short.