Jason Akermanis

One of the modern greats of Queensland football, he is a Mayne junior who won the 2001 Brownlow Medal and was a key member of the all-conquering Brisbane Lions side that won the 2001-02-03 AFL premierships.

An AFL and Lions Hall of Famer, he was a four-time All-Australian in 1999-2001-02-04, twice won the Merrett/Murray Medal as Brisbane club champion in 1999 and 2005, and won the AFL Goal of the Year Award in 2002.

Blindingly quick and blessed with sublime skills, equally adept on either foot, he was the icing on the team ‘cake’ in a Brisbane side full of inside ball-winners and ‘hard nuts’. A game-changer who famously kicked the winning goal in the closing moments of the 2002 AFL grand final against Collingwood.

In a 16-year career split between Brisbane (1995-2006) and the Western Bulldogs (2007-10) he played 325 games, kicked 421 goals, amassed 5858 possessions, enjoyed 197 AFL wins, played in 28 AFL finals, and polled 107 Brownlow Medal votes.

They are statistics that see him rank among the very best in Queensland football, ranking second in AFL games behind Nick Riewoldt, third in goals behind Jason Dunstall and Riewoldt, second in possessions behind Michael Voss, fourth in medal votes behind Riewoldt, Voss and Dunstall, and heading the list for wins and finals.

Forever a favorite at the Gabba, known for his trademark post-game handstand, he played and coached in Albury in his later years while working in the AFL media, and is now settled back in Brisbane.

Jason Akermanis was inducted into the Queensland Football Hall of Fame in 2008 and elevated to Legend status in 2023.