Damien Austin: How the Brisbane Lions Built a Dynasty | #261

In episode 261, Max chats with Brisbane Lions Head of High Performance Damian Austin. From rebuilding the Brisbane Lions into a premiership team to managing elite athletes through the biggest moments of their careers, Damian provides a rare insight into what it takes to build a high-performance environment in the AFL. We dive into the Lions' rise from the bottom of the ladder to the 2024 premiership, the philosophy behind creating a winning culture, why relationships matter more than data, the club's remarkable turnaround after a 2–5 start, and the mindset that drove sustained success. Plus, Damian shares behind-the-scenes stories on Lachie Neale's race against time to play in the Grand Final, the famous GWS finals comeback, developing young players, and the lessons he's learned across more than three decades in elite sport. A fascinating conversation on leadership, high performance, resilience and building championship teams. All this and much more in episode 261 of Sporting Max! www.instagram.com/sportingmax.podcast/