‘Battling’ Brisbane Lions veteran Mitch Robinson sent to reserves to rediscover form and fitness

Brisbane coach Chris Fagan wants one of the club’s stalwarts to find some form in the club’s VFL team.

Lions veteran Mitch Robinson will come back from a calf injury via the club’s VFL team. Picture: Albert Perez/AFL Photos/Getty Images

Lions veteran Mitch Robinson seems set for an extended run in the reserves, with Brisbane coach Chris Fagan admitting the wingman has been “battling” for form and fitness.

A calf problem forced Robinson out of last weekend’s QClash, and when he wasn’t included in Brisbane’s squad for Sunday’s blockbuster against the Swans at the SCG, it was assumed it was because he was still injured.

However, Fagan on Friday said Robinson – who turns 33 in June – was available for AFL selection, but the decision was made to bring him back via the club’s VFL side, probably for more than just a week.

“To be fair to Mitch he’s probably been battling with bits and pieces for a little while now,” Fagan said.

“Hopefully he can just get back in the reserves, play a good stretch of footy, get his form back and his fitness fully back and challenge for a spot in the seniors.

“We just want to make sure that when he comes back into the seniors that he’s not having those niggles ... because he’s been battling for a while.”

Fagan added that the Lions’ impressive display in last Sunday’s 52-point thrashing of the Gold Coast made it tough to recall Robinson despite the selection vacancy left by injured rookie Kai Lohmann, who is out for six weeks with a damaged ankle.

Mitch Robinson has been told to find form and fitness in the Lions’ reserves. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

“We had a good game last week and it’s pretty hard to squeeze him (Robinson) into the side,” the Lions coach said.

“I expect him to bounce back pretty quickly.”

With the Lions having until Friday night to settle on their final 22, Fagan said the replacement for midfielder Lohmann would not necessarily be a similar type of player.

“There are a lot of things we want to consider that we need to consider against the Swans,” he said.

“They’ve got really good forwards, really good small forwards who can mark the ball. That’s probably high on our list of things to think about.

“You might think ‘how does that affect what you do in your forward line?’ but it does because everything’s connected in a football team.

“A lot of our midfielders can play forward as well, so that’s the reason why we haven’t bought in a like-for-like replacement.”

Fagan played down Brisbane’s poor record at the SCG, with the Lions not having won at the venue in 13 years.

“It’s probably the ground most similar to our own (the Gabba) so from that perspective we feel comfortable enough to play there,” he said.

“It’s hard to win away from home in any sport in the world. It’s tough to win on the road against good sides.

“Here’s another opportunity – that’s how we look at it all the time.”

Originally published as ‘Battling’ Brisbane Lions veteran Mitch Robinson sent to reserves to rediscover form and fitness