Senior Callum Ah Chee (2019-)

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Cal Ah Chee Milestone a Dream Come True

Seven years ago, Callum Ah Chee was a talented indigenous teenager dreaming of one day playing AFL like many of his childhood heroes

Fast forward to Saturday night and the Western Australian, recruited from South Fremantle with pick 8 in the 2015 National Draft, will take the field for his 100th AFL match.

Ah Chee brings up the milestone as a Brisbane Lion in the QClash at The Gabba against the Gold Coast SUNS – the very team that gave him his start in the AFL.

The 24-year-old doesn’t seek the limelight, though this week he hopes to use his achievement to thank his family and inspire the next generation of indigenous talent.

“I am playing my 100th and get to do it against the old side too, which is fitting. So, looking forward to hopefully getting the win,” Ah Chee said.

“To put on the Lions guernsey and be playing 100 AFL games, I am sure it makes them (family) proud, but it just gives me a sense of pride to be going out playing for my family and my community back home as well.

“Hopefully it shows that young indigenous kids have a chance and can make it to the top level as well.”

One of those potential future AFL players could be his son, Iver, who will watching on with Ah Chee’s fiancé Laura, alongside his parents, Valeria and Brendon, who are flying into Brisbane for their son’s special match.

It is an impressive achievement in itself with Ah Chee forcing his way back into Chris Fagan’s best 22, a side looking to lock in a top four finish.

“I had a couple of inconsistent games there, probably a little patch for about two or three weeks but went away and worked in the twos and played some consistent football there and feel like I am back playing consistently and playing my role,” Ah Chee said.

“I am just happy to go play my role out there, if I need to go play back, I am confident to do that and also confident to go forward or play on the wing.

“That’s what I will go out and do this weekend and hopefully contribute to the team getting a good win.”

Ah Chee and his Brisbane Lions teammates know exactly how important a win is and how they need to play to get the four points.

Though as Ah Chee told media on Thursday, he isn’t expecting any special treatment from his former side in his milestone match.

“They can definitely match us, so we are not taking them lightly,” he said.

“They are going to come out strong because they are playing for finals, so it is important that we start on the front foot as well.

“They have some quality players and a potent forward line as well, so we are looking forward to the battle

“The recipe we how we played on the weekend, we had real good connections through the four quarters and that’s what we have got to bring this weekend to come away with a win.”
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Qscan Injury Update: Two Lions Ruled Out

Cal Ah Chee and Marcus Adams will both be ruled out of this Friday’s Round 22 clash against St Kilda under AFL Concussion Protocol.

Ah Chee was subbed out of Sunday’s game against Carlton in the second quarter, while Adams copped a knock to the ribs and sustained delayed concussion symptoms post the match.
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'How can this keep happening': Ah Chee calls out racist trolls

BRISBANE utility Callum Ah Chee has been racially abused online, days after being concussed in a controversial incident at the Gabba.

Ah Chee, who will miss the Lions' crucial clash with St Kilda on Friday night under the AFL's mandatory concussion protocols, posted the abuse he received on Instagram.

It came after Carlton captain Patrick Cripps was on Thursday night cleared of his two-game rough conduct charge on Ah Chee during a marathon appeals hearing.

Brisbane issued a statement on Friday declaring there is no place for this behaviour.

"The Brisbane Lions strongly condemn racist comments made about one of our players on social media", the statement says.

"It's disgusting behaviour and we must, and we will, continue to call it out.

"There is no place for racism in sport, or in society full stop."

Ah Chee posted the abhorrent comments, before writing it was "not something you want to wake up to".

"How can this still keep happening," the 24-year-old wrote on his Instagram story.

"Why can’t my brothers and I just play the game we love without having to worry about s*** like this.

"If my son grows up playing the game - I hope he doesn’t have to deal with this hate.

"It hurts and I’m sick to death of seeing it."

Veteran Lions teammate Mitch Robinson said the comments were as "weak as it ever gets".

"F*****g sick of having to see our Indigenous and multicultural players subject to racism over and over again.

"If you see it, even if you might know these uneducated trolls on social media keep calling it out and report them."

Brisbane Lions' club statement

The Brisbane Lions strongly condemn racist comments made about one of our players on social media.

It's disgusting behaviour and we must, and we will, continue to call it out.

There is no place for racism in sport, or in society full stop.

We have reported the incidences to the AFL Integrity Unit.

The Brisbane Lions celebrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and the incredible contribution Indigenous players have made to our club and to our great game.

It's disappointing to have to do so, but in moments like this we take the approach as a footy club to urge people to educate themselves about the harmful impacts of racially motivated comments and online abuse.

We would encourage you to visit itstopswithme.humanrights.gov.au to learn about the various forms of racism and the impact they can have on an individual, their family and those around them.

At the Lions we are a family, and when one hurts, we all hurt.

If you know anyone who behaves in this way, call it out as completely unacceptable.

Racism. It stops with me.
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Down but not out: Ah Chee reveals concussion toll

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JUST five weeks ago, it was questionable Callum Ah Chee would run out for Brisbane again in 2022.

Now he's an integral member of its team heading into Friday night's preliminary final against Geelong.

After being concussed in a controversial incident with Carlton captain Patrick Cripps in round 21, Ah Chee missed the final two rounds of the home and away season.

He simply hadn't bounced back as quick as some.

Then, just five days before the Lions hosted Richmond in an elimination final – and 20 days after the incident with Cripps - Ah Chee played for the club's VFL team in a desperate bid to prove he was ready to return to the top level.

The 24-year-old was chosen as the medical sub to face the Tigers and was on the field inside five minutes to replace concussed ruckman Oscar McInerney, before working his way into the 22 to face Melbourne last Friday night.

It's been quite a rollercoaster.

Speaking to AFL.com.au, Ah Chee said there was a lot of "unknown" factors with his concussion, making him and the Lions reticent to rush a return.

"Leading into that final round against Melbourne, which was day 12 of my protocols, I was having little symptoms here and there," he said.

"At the end of the day with concussion nowadays, health of the player is the priority.

"I haven't had a big hit like that before. Maybe one in my first year, but nothing to that scale.

"I wanted to make sure I was right and didn't want to do anything silly. Because I had some symptoms leading into the game, we all made the decision not to play."

Ah Chee did not want to comment on the incident with Cripps itself, but said it was hard to escape in the immediate aftermath given the Blues' star faced the Tribunal and then Appeals Board before ultimately getting off his two-match suspension.

Ah Chee said he didn't feel 100 per cent for quite a while after the incident.

"I wouldn't say it was scary, but just a bit of the unknown," he said.

"I've had a concussion before, but when you have symptoms like that, you're not sure how you're supposed to feel.

"Everyone is affected by it differently. There's no textbook way you should feel after a concussion."

Ah Chee has played 59 of a possible 66 games since heading to Brisbane from Gold Coast three seasons ago, but also knew he had a job on his hands to win a spot back in the senior team when he was ready.

He said playing that game in the VFL was as much for his own confidence as anything.

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"I definitely think I had to prove myself," he said.

"It was as much about being confident being hit by bodies as anything, and I definitely got that out of that game.

"Just being comfortable in the contest."

Ah Chee has kicked a goal in each of the Lions' two finals triumphs – including a match-turner as the half-time siren sounded against the Demons – and looms as a key member on the wing against the Cats.

"Last week was the best footy we've played all year in that second half," he said.

"You play Melbourne on their home deck in a big final, and they've got the better of us during the year, it definitely gives the boys a lot of confidence heading into this week.

"Geelong is a great side. We expect another really tough game, but we're ready."
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Stars Shine in Brisbane's Midfield

Unsung Hero

Cal Ah Chee

Often flying under the radar due to his ability to play across all three lines on the ground, Cal Ah Chee’s season and importance to Brisbane’s side cannot be understated.

Appearing 21 times in the 2022 season, the 25-year-old proved the ultimate swiss-army knife, popping up in the forward line, back line and on the wing at various occasions.

But it was on the wing the swingman looked most comfortable. With Hugh McCluggage moved to an inside midfield role through most of the season, Ah Chee’s strong aerial ability and two-way running capacity provided great versatility for the Lions.
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Qscan Injury Update: Trio Ruled Out For Round One

Callum Ah Chee will also miss the trip to South Australia as he recovers from a quad strain. He is expected to return to skills training later this week.
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Spotlight On Ah Chee

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If good things really do come in threes Callum Ah Chee will be a happy man on Saturday. And three will become four and five. And more.

Set to play against his former club Gold Coast in Q-Clash #25 at Carrara on Saturday afternoon, Ah Chee is coming off a career-best performance against Geelong last Saturday and the first birthday of son Iver on 14 July.

Another good showing and a win against the Suns will set the 25-year-old up for a good run into September after a frustrating 2023.

Coach Chris Fagan admits he has been ‘impatient’ about getting Ah Chee, who has played only Rounds 10-14-16-19 at AFL level this year, into his top side on a consistent basis.

“Every time we’ve gone to pick him he’s had a soft tissue or something else. And when did get him in and played well against Richmond (in Round 16) he got concussed. So I was really pleased for him to come in and do what he did (against Geelong).

“He’s such an honest performer. He played a super game – kicked a goal at a really important time – and got the reward after been working really hard on his game for quite some time.

After starting his 2023 campaign in the VFL after an injury-disrupted lead-in, Ah Chee has not played more than three weeks in a row at any level in a season that ticks over to round 20 this week.

Three byes (two at VFL level), a concussion and two one-week injuries, coupled with limited game time when he was the starting substitute in two of four AFL outings, have combined to deny him any sort of reasonable momentum.

A real heart and soul member of the Lions playing group, Ah Chee stands to be a potential benefactor of the devastating knee injury that ended Will Ashcroft’s season last Saturday, which will free up more game time through the midfield, wing and half forward.


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Fagan admits he had originally toyed with using Ah Chee at half back but after his excellent showing against the Cats conceded his heart is in playing forward and wing.

It is the role for which Ah Chee, a product of WAFL club South Fremantle, was originally drafted with high expectations by the Gold Coast Suns in 2015 by now Brisbane list manager Dom Ambrogio.

Pre-Draft scouting reports on AhChee said: “(He) is among the most skillful players in the draft, boasting brilliant use by foot. He can pinpoint short passes on both sides of his body, kicks accurately at goal and can make space for teammates by clever passing. The 18-year-old separates himself from some of his fellow draft hopefuls with his aerial exploits. Despite being only 182cm, Ah Chee has a big leap on him that gives him another way to get into the game.”

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So highly was he regarded he went at pick #8 behind Jacob Weitering (Carlton), Josh Schache (Brisbane), Callum Mills (Sydney), Clayton Oliver (Melbourne), Darcy Parish and Aaron Francis (Essendon) and Jacob Hopper (GWS).

Among those who were drafted after him were Carlton spearheads Harry McKay (#10) and Charlie Curnow (#12), Brisbane’s Eric Hipwood (#14), Richmond’s Daniel Rioli (#15), GWS’ Harry Himmelberg (#16) and the Western Bulldogs’ now-Lion Josh Dunkley (#25).

In four years at the Suns from 2016-19 he played 45 games, and only one in 2019 due to injury woes. He’d enjoyed only eight wins – five in his first season.

Married to ex-Cairns girl Laura Hanlon, daughter of former Tasmanian representative footballer turned AFLQ development ace Rick Hanlon, he was keen to stay in Queensland. So, already well-known to Ambrogio, who had joined the Lions in February 2017, he sought a fresh start up the highway.

After the Lions traded a future second round pick and a future fourth round pick for Ah Chee he packed up his guitar and melodic singing voice, popular among the Brisbane playing group, and moved to the Gabba.

Set for his 65th Lions game on Saturday, Ah Chee will hope to bank his 50th Lions win and defend an unbeaten Q-Clash record for the Lions against the Suns.

After a 1-4 Q-Clash record for Gold Coast, he is 6-0 in Lions colours in the Q-Clash, and celebrated his 100th career game against the Suns in Round 19 at the Gabba last year with a 17-point win.

Ah Chee became just the third player to play for the Suns and the Lions in the Q-Clash when he moved to Brisbane, following Irishman Pearce Hanley and current teammate Jarryd Lyons.
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Mum’s pride as Lions’ Callum Ah Chee pushes to be first Australian-Chinese to win AFL flag

Lions half-forward Callum Ah Chee will have a massive multicultural Brisbane contingent cheering for him in the MCG grandstands at Saturday’s AFL grand final against Collingwood.

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Lions half-forward Callum Ah Chee will have a massive Brisbane contingent cheering for him in the MCG grandstands at Saturday’s AFL grand final against Collingwood.

The often underrated 25-year-old is one win away from becoming the first Australian man with Chinese heritage to play in an AFL premiership.

His mother, Valerie, took time out from her job as a researcher at Mater Hospital to drive to Melbourne for the history-making match.
Mrs Chee, who has six children, said all Callum’s brothers would fly to Melbourne for the game and there would be a huge family presence at the MCG.

Even big brother Brendon, also a professional Aussie Rules footballer who played for the West Coast Eagles and Port Adelaide Power, will be in the grand stand to hopefully see history in the making.

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Ah Chee was playing with the Gold Coast Suns when he was traded to Brisbane at the end of the 2019 AFL season.

However, after a difficult year, he has become one of the Lions’ best performers in the finals.

Mrs Ah Chee said she was “really proud” of Callum and before leaving on the 20-hour drive to Victoria, she told her favourite half-forward “just don’t overthink it”.

“I told him ‘play your instinctive footy that we know that you can and just really go for it’,” she said.

“He’s worked extremely hard to get where he is and he’s shown a lot of resilience and hard work.

“Watching Callum win the preliminary-grand finals one week ago was nerve-racking.

“I don’t do good with close games. I can’t handle the stress and I can’t sit down.

“Being right there in the stands watching him will be even more nerve-racking.”

The Chinese and Indigenous crowd will be fully backing Callum, whose great-great-grandfather Owen was a Cantonese immigrant and became a respected founder of the town of Derby in Western Australia.

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“All of Callum’s brothers are flying into Melbourne on Friday night and his grandparents, so that’ll be lovely,” Mrs Ah Chee said.

“We know the biggest mob will be watching on. My family is huge. My mum and dad had five kids, 26 grandchildren and 45 great-grandchildren and I know that they will all be supporting Callum.

“My brother, up in Port Hedland, is part of the biggest mob that will be tuning in supporting him and that’s just one side of the family,” she said.

Originally from Western Australia, Mrs Ah Chee immediately set the record straight with colleagues at the hospital that she would be barracking for The Lions as soon as she started working there in June.

She said it was now “no secret” at the hospital that her son Callum played in the state’s top AFL team.

“I know that some of my colleagues were watching the preliminary grand final because when I rocked up to work on Monday a lot of them said ‘Oh, congratulations. That’s really good Brisbane got through’,” she said.

“It wasn’t a secret that Callum is my son and that he plays for The Lions because you talk around the kitchen on your break and ask about the AFL teams.

“I think somebody thought it was a bit weird I went for Brisbane when I’ve come from WA, so we sort of got to talking about it.

“My colleagues have been really supportive and excited too, which I think is really nice.”

Mrs Ah Chee started working at the Mater Research team after her husband, Brendon Snr, was transferred to Brisbane for work this year.
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Senior Callum Ah Chee (2019-)

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