Harris Andrews
Harris Andrews (born 11 December 1996) is an Australian rules footballer who plays as a key defender and serves as co-captain for the Brisbane Lions in the Australian Football League (AFL).[1][2] Selected at pick 61 in the 2014 National Draft from Aspley in the NEAFL, Andrews made his AFL debut in 2015 and has since played 239 games, establishing himself as one of the league's premier intercepting defenders known for his aerial prowess and leadership.[1] Andrews' career highlights include three All-Australian selections in 2019, 2020, and 2025, along with inclusions in the All-Australian squad in 2023 and 2024, recognizing his elite defensive performances.[1][3] He won the Brisbane Lions' best and fairest award, the Merritt-Murray Medal, in 2023, and was nominated for the AFL Rising Star in 2015 during his breakout season.[2] As an academy graduate who rose through the club's development pathway, Andrews has been instrumental in the Lions' resurgence, contributing to back-to-back premierships in 2024 and 2025, including a standout performance in the 2025 Grand Final victory over Geelong.[4][5] His leadership as co-captain since 2023 has been pivotal in fostering team culture and defensive strategy, earning praise as a modern-day great in the position.[6]Early life and junior career
Family background and upbringing
Harris Andrews was born on 11 December 1996 in Fitzroy, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, to parents Wayne and Wendy Andrews, who are of Australian heritage.[7] His father, Wayne, is a passionate supporter of the Essendon Football Club, reflecting the family's ties to Victorian Australian rules football culture during Andrews' early years.[7][8] Andrews spent his formative early childhood in Victoria, where the family enjoyed a close-knit dynamic centered on shared interests in sports.[7] He has a younger brother, Alex, who also developed an interest in Australian rules football, with the siblings often engaging in family-oriented activities that fostered their athletic pursuits.[8] His parents provided strong support for sports involvement, encouraging participation in various physical activities from a young age and attending local events together.[7][8] In 2000, when Andrews was four years old, the family relocated from Victoria to Brisbane's northern suburbs.[8][7] This move introduced him to a new environment where rugby league was more prominent among peers, but local community influences in Brisbane soon sparked his initial exposure to Australian rules football through casual play and family discussions about the sport.[8] This early immersion laid the groundwork for his later transition into organized junior football.[7]Education and early football involvement
Andrews attended Aspley State Primary School in Brisbane's northern suburbs, where he initially explored various sports including rugby league and soccer before focusing on Australian rules football.[9] He later continued his education at Padua College for secondary schooling, balancing academics with his growing involvement in the sport.[10] At age five, Andrews began playing organized junior football with the Aspley Football Club, starting in the Auskick program and progressing through various age-group teams, including under-12s, under-14s, under-16s, and eventually the under-18 Colts side in the NEAFL competition.[8] Despite not earning state selection in his earlier junior years, he demonstrated versatility by playing both forward and defensive roles during this period.[11] In 2013, at age 16, Andrews was selected to join the Brisbane Lions Academy, marking a significant milestone in his development as he transitioned to more structured training and higher-level exposure.[12] That same year, while competing for Aspley's under-18 team, he led the NEAFL under-18 competition in goalkicking with 80 goals in 17 games and earned his first state representative honors by playing for Queensland at the AFL National Under-18 Championships.[13]Professional AFL career
Draft, debut, and early development
Harris Andrews was selected by the Brisbane Lions with pick 61 in the 2014 AFL National Draft, after the club matched a second-round bid from North Melbourne on the Academy product.[8] Standing at 200 cm, Andrews entered the league as a versatile key-position player from the Lions' Academy, having honed his skills in the NEAFL under-18s with Aspley.[14] Andrews made his AFL debut in Round 3 of the 2015 season against Richmond at the Gabba, where he lined up as a forward and registered nine disposals, including two marks, to go with his first career goal—a long-range effort from over 50 metres that briefly sparked Brisbane's scoring in a 79-point loss.[15][16] The 18-year-old's composure under pressure drew early praise from club officials, who viewed him as a raw but promising talent capable of contributing in multiple roles.[17] In his debut season of 2015, Andrews played 19 games, primarily rotating between forward and defence while adapting to the AFL's physicality, averaging 11.6 disposals and booting four goals as an emerging key-position player.[18] He showed resilience in recovering from minor knocks, including a leg injury sustained in Round 23 against the Western Bulldogs that forced him from the field as a substitute.[19] By 2016, under coach Justin Leppitsch, Andrews transitioned fully to the backline, playing 17 games and solidifying his role as a intercepting defender with strong aerial ability, though he managed two goals for the year amid the Lions' challenging rebuild.[18] This positional shift laid the foundation for his growth, which accelerated following Chris Fagan's appointment as senior coach at the end of 2016, emphasizing defensive structure and leadership in key positions.[20]Breakthrough and leadership emergence
Andrews' breakthrough came during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, where he solidified his role as a key defender for the Brisbane Lions, averaging 13.0 disposals and 6.3 marks per game in 2017 across 22 matches, building on his early defensive foundations.[18] By 2018, he elevated his output to 15.6 disposals and 6.6 marks per game in 18 games, including a club-record 23 spoils in a single match against Sydney, the highest by any player that season.[18][21] His intercepting prowess was evident, as he ranked among the league's top defenders in one-percenters, exemplified by a league-record 26 in one game against Sydney.[22] In 2019, Andrews emerged as an elite backman, leading the AFL in spoils with an average of 9.9 per game (207 total) over 21 matches, while averaging 12.8 disposals and 5.5 marks.[23][18] This dominant performance earned him his first All-Australian selection as the full-back, recognizing his ability to neutralize key forwards and orchestrate defensive transitions.[2] He also finished fifth in the club's Merrett-Murray Medal with 245 votes, underscoring his consistent impact.[24] The shortened 2020 season due to COVID-19 did not hinder his form; Andrews secured back-to-back All-Australian honors, averaging 10.7 disposals and 4.4 marks in 16 games, while maintaining elite spoiling rates amid the Lions' finals push.[2][18] He again polled in the top 10 for the Merrett-Murray Medal that year.[25] Andrews' leadership emerged early, with his appointment as vice-captain in 2018 at age 21, the youngest in the club's leadership group, reflecting his maturity and influence.[26] On the field, he demonstrated commanding decision-making by directing the backline, organizing structures against opposition attacks, and leading by example in high-pressure situations, such as blanketing top forwards during key wins.[27][28] His vocal presence and tactical acumen helped stabilize Brisbane's defense during the 2018-2020 rebuild, earning him three consecutive Most Professional Player awards from 2017 to 2019.[29]Recent seasons and premiership triumphs
In 2023, Harris Andrews was appointed co-captain of the Brisbane Lions alongside Lachie Neale, succeeding Dayne Zorko in a leadership model designed to leverage their complementary strengths—Andrews' defensive poise and Neale's midfield intensity—to foster a collaborative, values-driven team culture.[30][31] This shared philosophy emphasized consistent leadership through adversity, as evidenced by their joint efforts to maintain team unity during a challenging season that saw Brisbane finish sixth on the ladder. Andrews' on-field excellence culminated in him winning the Merrett–Murray Medal as the club's best and fairest player, polling 62 votes to edge out Neale on 61.[32][33] His standout performances included a career-high 18 kicks and nine intercept marks against St Kilda in Round 15, and a season-best 17 spoils in the win over Adelaide in Round 22, underpinning his averages of 10.6 spoils and 3.5 intercept marks per game.[32] Under Andrews and Neale's co-captaincy, the Lions surged through the 2024 finals to claim the AFL premiership, defeating Sydney by 60 points in the Grand Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Andrews delivered a commanding performance in the decider, recording 16 disposals and seven intercepts while anchoring the backline against Sydney's forward line, contributing to Brisbane's dominant 18.12 (120) to 9.6 (60) victory.[34][35] As co-captain, he shared in the inaugural Ron Barassi Medal, awarded to premiership captains in honor of the legendary Ron Barassi, recognizing his role in leading the club to its first flag since 2003.[36] Andrews' form carried into 2025, where he earned All-Australian selection for the third time, selected in the backline for his league-leading defensive contributions.[37] He led Brisbane to back-to-back premierships with a 47-point Grand Final win over Geelong, finishing with 18.14 (122) to 11.9 (75), as the Lions exploded for eight goals to one in the final quarter. Andrews topped the competition in one-percenters for the fifth consecutive season with 229 for the year, exemplifying his selfless defensive work that solidified Brisbane's premiership defense.[4][38]Playing statistics and style
Career statistics overview
Harris Andrews has played 239 games for the Brisbane Lions from 2015 to 2025, scoring 11 goals, with career averages of 13.2 disposals, 5.7 marks, and 8.3 one percenters per game.[18] These figures reflect his role as a key defender, emphasizing intercepting opposition entries and contested marking over offensive output. His total disposals stand at 3,156 and marks at 1,369, underscoring a consistent presence in the backline despite occasional disruptions from injuries.[18] Early in his career, Andrews faced injury setbacks that limited his games, notably in 2016 when he played only 17 matches due to a plantar fascia injury, and in 2020 with 16 appearances amid a hamstring strain and the shortened season.[39][40] By contrast, his participation increased steadily post-2021, reaching 26-27 games in recent seasons, including contributions in the 2024 and 2025 premiership campaigns. Over time, his one-percenter involvement trended upward, rising from 5.0 per game in 2015 to a peak of 10.6 in 2023, before stabilizing around 8.5 in 2025, highlighting his growing influence in defensive pressure acts.[18] Andrews' career metrics compare favorably to positional norms for key defenders, who typically average 12-14 disposals and 5-6 marks per game across the league.[41] His slightly above-average disposal rate and mark volume position him among reliable backline anchors, with marks exceeding the benchmark through strong aerial contests.| Year | Games | Goals | Disposals (avg) | Marks (avg) | One Percenters (avg) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 19 | 4 | 11.6 | 5.3 | 5.0 |
| 2016 | 17 | 2 | 10.3 | 4.2 | 9.3 |
| 2017 | 22 | 2 | 13.0 | 6.3 | 7.8 |
| 2018 | 18 | 1 | 15.6 | 6.6 | 11.4 |
| 2019 | 21 | 0 | 12.8 | 5.5 | 10.7 |
| 2020 | 16 | 0 | 10.7 | 4.4 | 9.3 |
| 2021 | 23 | 1 | 15.3 | 7.9 | 9.6 |
| 2022 | 24 | 0 | 12.5 | 6.4 | 10.3 |
| 2023 | 26 | 1 | 14.2 | 7.8 | 10.6 |
| 2024 | 26 | 0 | 13.4 | 7.5 | 8.2 |
| 2025 | 27 | 0 | 14.2 | 8.2 | 8.5 |
| Career | 239 | 11 | 13.2 | 5.7 | 8.3 |