Brisbane players celebrate AFL premiership ahead of fan day in Fitzroy - ABC News & Headlines – Australian Broadcasting Corporation

The Brisbane premiership team is presented to Lions fans at the family day at Brunswick Oval in Fitzroy. (ABC News)

Brisbane players and fans continue to celebrate the Lions' 2026 AFL grand final win in Melbourne bars after the game at the MCG.

A family day is being held in the heartland of the former Fitzroy Lions.

Meanwhile, the Dockers are flying back to Fremantle after the team held a private function in Melbourne last night.

Excitement levels remained high as Lions supporters gathered to cheer on Brisbane premiership players after yesterday's last-minute win over the Dockers in the 2026 AFL grand final.

The players presented the premiership cup to fans at Brunswick Street Oval in the former Fitzroy Lions heartland. 

Lions coach Chris Fagan described the end of yesterday's game as the best five minutes of any grand final. (ABC News)

Coach Chris Fagan thanked the fans for their support throughout the year as well as yesterday.

"It wasn't the prettiest of grand finals and for large parts of it we looked like we probably weren't going to win the game," Fagan told the crowd. 

"But this group's got amazing heart and amazing resilience but when they got 17 points up and played that wharfie thing, our boys fired up and were able to play the best five minutes you'll ever see in a grand final."

Fagan left the stage to cheers of "10 more years" from the crowd.

Excitement levels remain high as Lions fans cheer on their premiership players in Fitzroy. (ABC News)

One of the fans attending this morning said the win still felt "surreal".

"Freo to their credit played so great all year but at the end I guess the Lions had the will to win."

He said today's fan day was an "opportunity to pay tribute to the guys and the team and the club that's given me to much happiness.

Robyn arrived at the fan day at 5:45am to get a good spot near the stage. (ABC News)

Robyn was a former Fitzroy, now Brisbane supporter.

She arrived at 5:45am to get a prime viewing spot for when the team was presented on stage.

"We were the first ones here," she said.

The 2026 AFL Premiership Cup was presented to Lions supporters in Fitzroy. (ABC News)

Another Lions fan travelled from Tasmania for his first grand final.

He reflected on "a nerve-wracking" game.

"Freo had it, honest, and to fire back when they had that wharfie time and kick their last four goals and here we are, it's unbelievable."

He said seeing the players today would top off the weekend.

The cold and wet grand final day did not dampen spirits, with players gathering at a South Yarra bar long into the night.

The Lions showed off the 2026 premiership cup during the celebrations. (ABC News)

The premiership players took turns drinking from the cup while across town in Fitzroy, fans relived the rollercoaster victory.

Police said they were pleased with the behaviour of fans at the MCG yesterday.

Josh Dunkley drinks from the 2026 premiership cup as the Lions celebrated their thrilling premiership win at the MCG. (ABC News)

Just over 100,000 spectators packed into the ground for the history-making clash. 

Police say nine people were evicted due to behavioural issues and one penalty notice was issued.

Lions fans gathered at the Royal Derby Hotel in Fitzroy to revel in the grand final win. (ABC News)

Fans will continue to celebrate the win today with a Lions family day to be held in Fitzroy. (ABC News)

Fremantle players are flying home today after the Dockers' heartbreaking loss.

The Dockers arrive at the Melbourne Airport to board their flight home to Fremantle. (ABC News)

Executive General Manager of Football, Joe Brierty, said the playing group remained sombre this morning.

"We're obviously hurting after the result," he said at Melbourne Airport.

"We put everything on the line and gave it everything ... I'm proud of everyone involved and the way we went about it."

Fremantle's Joe Brierty says he's proud of the team and its supporters.   (ABC News)

Brierty said the support from the club's fans had been unwavering all season.

"The game yesterday sends tingles down your spine, being a part of it and the purple army.

"The players talked about it in the lead up and even throughout the year we've had massive crowds at Optus Stadium and ... the sea of purple across Melbourne was something we'll reflect on and be really proud of.

"We know they're probably hurting a lot today as well but we can't thank them enough."

Fremantle captain Alex Pearce suffered an Achilles injury during the grand final. (ABC News)

He said captain Alex Pearce was yet to undergo scans to see how badly he'd torn his Achilles and whether he required surgery.

After the game, Dockers fans said they were gutted but they remained stoic.

"I feel like this is the start of our window, so very proud of the boys and what they were able to do this year," one said.

Workers clean up in Fremantle last night after the AFL grand final. (ABC News)

"We were so close but we just didn't quite make it," another said.

"But what I'm really happy about is just how the community just all came together, not just Fremantle but across all WA, everybody was just all for it, altogether excited about one thing."

Fremantle fans had gathered at pubs to watch the grand final together. (ABC News)

Another generous Dockers fan was able to congratulate the victors despite his disappointment.

"Credit to the Brisbane Lions. It was going to be a fairytale no matter who won."