Zac Bailey and Josh Dunkley during the round 17 match between Brisbane and Port Adelaide at The Gabba, July 05, 2025. Picture: AFL Photos

YOU WON’T see Brisbane star Josh Dunkley carrying Zac Bailey’s bags for him on game day or polishing his younger teammate’s boots after a shot on goal, but he is proud to play the role of ‘caddy’ in a different way. 

Likewise, Hugh McCluggage and Jarrod Berry have paired up with Jaspa Fletcher and Sam Marshall respectively to help guide the young Lions as part of a successful mentoring program at the club. 

A ‘caddy’ at the Lions is a senior player who is paired with a younger teammate to provide “on-field and off-field support, mindset and preparation guidance, and training and technique assistance”.

When young forward Ty Gallop came into the AFL team late in the season and made an impact, Cam Rayner was the ‘caddy’ taking pride in what the 19-year-old had achieved after hours of the pair working together and looking out for each other.   

The Lions realised years ago that their senior stars are among the club’s best assets when developing and fast-tracking young players. They’d seen informal mentoring happening around the club but wanted to add some structure to it and implemented a buddy system that has had great success. 

Just like a caddy will help a golfer find the best line to the green, the likes of Dunkley, McCluggage and Berry are showing their young teammates the best path to successful senior football.  

“We implemented it a couple of years ago and we call it a caddy system because the boys love their golf,” head of development Scott Borlace told AFL.com.au this week. 

“It’s a typical buddy system where we have more experienced players working with younger players on a day-to-day basis and looking out for each other on the track, and then we give opportunities to provide feedback to each other. 

“It was happening informally, but we wanted to formalise that process because the guys had played a lot of finals footy together and we just wanted to tap into that and get them helping our younger players. 

“Formally it’s been great, but informally it’s probably been even better. I’ll look over and see Jarrod Berry and Sam Marshall sitting on a computer together, and I haven’t had to orchestrate that. That’s just Jarrod taking Sam aside and helping him with his role.

“For the older players, it’s motivating and rewarding to help someone else.”

Cam Rayner and Levi Ashcroft after the Semi Final between Brisbane and Gold Coast at The Gabba, September 13, 2025. Picture: Getty Images

The ability for senior players to excel in mentoring roles hasn’t happened by chance at Brisbane, with the club rolling out its own emerging coaches course after the pandemic in 2020.

Players learned about drill design, deliberate practice, giving feedback and other tools for effective coaching, with Ryan Lester, Charlie Cameron, Linc McCarthy and McCluggage all showing different leadership traits now that would help them as coaches.  

By up-skilling their senior players, the Lions have been able to support one of the more modest development programs in the AFL, with the highly respected Borlace joined by ex-Greater Western Sydney forward Daniel Lloyd, VFL coach Ben Hudson, and a small group of part-time staff. 

The success of the program is undeniable though, with a new wave of talented young players showing they can make an immediate impact when called on and helping drive the Lions into a fifth preliminary final in six years. 

“The emerging coaches course was actually a response to losing coaches during COVID, and the boys really enjoyed it and got a lot out of it,” Borlace said.  

“The development space is probably not as well-resourced as it used to be prior to COVID, but it’s allowed us to focus on trying to win a premiership while we’re in the performance window that we’re in.”

The Lions will field eight players aged 22 or under against Collingwood on Saturday evening, compared to the Magpies’ two, with the new generation led by premiership players Will Ashcroft, Kai Lohmann, Jaspa Fletcher, Darcy Wilmot and Logan Morris. 

They will be joined by first-year players Levi Ashcroft, Sam Marshall and Gallop, who have all played in the Lions’ two finals so far. 

Borlace said the club took great pride in the impact of its young players and described coach Chris Fagan as one the best ‘development’ coaches in the game, given his ability to continue promoting youth through a premiership window. 

“He’s got that really good balance of understanding what’s required to win on the weekend, but also the bigger picture of having a successful club over a long period of time,” Borlace said. 

“He’s probably one of the best development coaches going around with his understanding of all those development philosophies.

“So, the fact that young players can come in and play a role and help us win a premiership last year was unbelievable and the ultimate sort of joy for us in the development space.” 

Borlace said a lot of credit for the early impact of young players had to go to the talent pathways, with young players – including those drafted via the club’s Academy – arriving with the character and talent needed to succeed.

A lot of hard work has gone into creating the development program at Brisbane, allowing those players to thrive in a positive environment and have their strengths reinforced. 

Josh Dunkley and Zac Bailey arrive at the AFL Awards at Centrepiece, August 28, 2025. Picture: Getty Images

But with senior players who are willing to invest in their younger teammates, Borlace said coaches had increasingly become more like facilitators as young stars like Bailey soak in lessons from their ‘caddies’ and enjoy success as a result. 

“Zac was a pretty casual sort of guy coming in and he’s 25 now, but Dunks has been unbelievable in terms of showing him how to prepare and what’s required,” Borlace said.

“That’s been one of the most significant caddy relationships and I know he would have been really proud seeing Zac earn All-Australian selection this year.

“No doubt he would have felt like he played a small part in that, given the contribution he has made to Bails’ growth on field and off field.”Â