- Bailey Smith had an afternoon he’d prefer to forget
The Brisbane Lions are two-time premiers after swallowing up a disappointing Geelong Cats in the final quarter of the 2025 AFL Grand Final.
The Cats were left licking their wounds after suffering a 47-point loss to Brisbane in Saturday’s decider at the MCG.
In a notable turning point on the stroke of three quarter time, Geelong superstar Bailey Smith shirked a contest which allowed Dayne Zorko to feed the ball to Lachie Neale – who kicked a huge goal.
It was an afternoon Smith would prefer to forget after being nailed by Lions’ fire-starter Cam Rayner in the final term.
To the delight of many Brisbane supporters, Smith was left sprawling on the grass with his white headband knocked off in the process.
‘Hang it in the louvre,’ posted one X user.
Bailey Smith lashed out at Harris Andrews late in the game following a crunching tackle from Cam Rayner
‘Put it on repeat,’ replied another.
‘Rayner nailing Bailey Smith and destroying his stupid headband is one of the great moments in Australian sport,’ said a third.
Smith looked furious later in the match as he got into it with Brisbane skipper Harris Andrews.
‘Bailey Smith having an argument with Harris Andrews. It’s an argument Smith will never win with the scoreboard the way it is,’ said Gerard Healy said on AFL Nation.
Fans on social media also chimed in on the topic.
‘Bailey Smith mouthing off at Harris Andrews, one of the best on the ground, while his team is being flogged. Yeah. Says it all,’ posted one X user.
‘Harris Andrews handled it perfectly, he just basically ignored him and treated Smith with the contempt he deserved,’ said another.
‘Classless,’ posted another.
Rayner revealed after the match that he always knew he would be public enemy No.1 and lapped up the extra attention from Cats fans in the 100,000-strong crowd en route to his second premiership.
The Geelong Cats superstar had a miserable day at the office
The former No.1 draft pick had a mixed bag at the MCG on Saturday, tallying just two disposals and giving away four free kicks in a quiet first half.
But he finished with 11 touches, nine contested possessions and a goal in the 18.14 (122) to 11.9 (75) win, kick-starting a run of seven consecutive majors for the Lions as they blew the game wide open in the final term.
‘I loved it, I really did. The boos are like cheers for me,’ Rayner said with a fresh premiership medal hanging around his neck.
‘The grand final parade was awesome, I loved people getting into me. That was fun, and then again today, it was so awesome.
‘Anyone that comes to the footy is a supporter and I understand that they’ve got every right. I welcome it all and I loved it. It was good fun.’
