Lions veteran Dayne Zorko to miss another trial with nagging hamstring injury

Lions coach Chris Fagan isn’t in a rush to bring back former captain Dayne Zorko, who is still being hampered by a hamstring injury.

Former Lions skipper Dayne Zorko is still battling a hamstring injury. Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

Former captain Dayne Zorko faces the tough task of forcing his way into Brisbane’s round 1 team on the back of no pre-season games after being ruled out of the Lions’ trial against Geelong on Thursday night

A supposed minor hamstring tear will now force Zorko out of a fourth successive hitout, with the veteran having also missed last Friday’s practice match against the Swans as well as two intra-club contests.

Despite Zorko’s lack of football, Lions coach Chris Fagan remained upbeat about the 34-year-old veteran’s chances of playing against Port Adelaide in Brisbane’s season opener on March 18.

“We were half hopeful that he’d be right for Geelong but he won’t be,” Fagan said on Tuesday.

“We’re very confident he’ll be available for round 1. With an older player like him, I’m not actually that concerned that he hasn’t had match practice.

“He’s a natural touch player. He’s very fit at the moment, so I’m happy for him to come into the season to play straight away without any of the background matches.

“We’re just using the time we’ve got while we’ve got it rather than trying to rush him because there’s no need to hurry.”

Dayne Zorko is still sidelined with a hamstring injury. Picture: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

Fagan’s ringing endorsement of Zorko will be music to the ears of the experienced midfielder after he stood down as Brisbane’s captain earlier this month.

Such is the depth in the Lions’ squad that Zorko, without the captaincy, is perhaps no longer the automatic selection he once was.

He wasn’t missed last week in Brisbane’s 45-point thumping of the Swans, and if the Lions again impress against the Cats at Brighton Homes Arena, Fagan will have some pleasant selection headaches for round 1.

While Zorko won’t play on Thursday night, star on-baller Lachie Neale is set to start despite suffering a corked quad and dislocated finger on Thursday night.

Neale was likely to have been one of the five players interviewed for the Brisbane captaincy by Fagan and other Lions officials on Monday.

The Lions will announce on Wednesday who will replace Zorko as skipper and whether they opt for a co-captaincy model.

“We went into this process with a really open mind,” Fagan said.

“We looked across the AFL and there’s lots of different models. Some teams have got two (captains), some teams have got one.

“We’ve had an open mind about it. More than one is still on the cards.”

Other likely captaincy contenders include defender Harris Andrews and midfielder Hugh McCluggage.

“We’ve got a lot of quality young men at our footy club who have got great capacity to lead,” Fagan said.

Originally published as Lions veteran Dayne Zorko to miss another trial with nagging hamstring injury