Triple premiership Lion Marcus Ashcroft couldn't convince his son to support the club. Instead, former teammate Nigel Lappin swayed the prodigious young talent to follow the club where he's been a long-time assistant coach - Geelong.
"Dad retired before I was born, and Nigel Lappin was a close family friend of Dad's, obviously he played here as well," Ashcroft said.
"I loved Joel Selwood when I was really young, and (Lappin) sent me a Selwood jersey when I was young - that was sort of it.
"I really looked forward to playing them in the practice match and now to play them in the home-and-away season, it'll be really exciting for me and for the team to get back on track."
It's one subplot for the third-placed Lions' keenly-awaited match against the fifth-placed Cats at the Gabba, as the visitors look to make it five games unbeaten on a run that's carried them back into top-four contention.
Ashcroft said seeing the reigning premiers fight back from a patchy 5-6 start to the year was hardly a surprise.
"They've been really red hot and they were always going to come good," he said.
"Obviously a slow start, but the club that they are, they're always going to come good.
"They'll pick up their form towards the finals, so this will be a good clash this week."
Rising Star favourite Ashcroft has quickly become a dependable member of the Brisbane midfield mix, and is yet to miss a game in his rookie season while averaging a crisp 22 disposals.
With his father back in Melbourne, he said stepping out of his legendary dad's shoes had been easy.
"There was always a little bit of expectation coming in, but all the way through I haven't really read too far into it," Ashcroft said.
"Even last year, coming to the end of the year as a highly-touted pick, it didn't really mean much to me.
"I've found a good balance between him just being a good supporting role model to me as just a parent in general, but also I do love to pick his brain.
"We'll chat a couple of times throughout the week and after most games, reviewing the game … it just sets me up to be better prepared the week after, so I still really enjoy that balance."
