We continue to disagree. One of the reasons Essendon/AFL did not pursue it because the Brisbane Bombers were yet to exist, and were unlikely to ever exist. There was talk on Melbourne media last week that Essendon/AFL may still have taken action had it looked possible that Bombers would get the licence. Copyright and use of names is not clear cut. Fremantle were prohibited from using their nickname Dockers in certain circumstances until recently due to a US Jeans company. It was not to appear on any clothing, merch, etc.
So, it is always best to select a name where you are at least not aware of any competitors currently using the same name.
Thanks for making my point that there's no such thing as a brand that there aren't any competitors whom could challenge...
Try and avoid it all you like there'll always be a reasonable risk that somebody somewhere challenges your trademark, so you shouldn't worry about it unless somebody owns the trademark (i.e. you are certain they'll challenge), and in the case of Brisbane Hornets nobody owns the trademark.
BTW, you shouldn't trust a damn thing that comes out of the media in Melbourne when it pertains to the AFL competing with another sport, their bias is baffling.
If the AFL were going to take action they would have done so a decade ago, and if they did it would have opened up a can of worms that'd be in their interest to keep closed as well.