Zorko’s magic return
BRISBANE have shown bitter rivals Gold Coast the ultimate respect by naming in-doubt skipper Dayne Zorko for tomorrow’s QClash.
But the Suns have used the biannual grudge match to draw a line in the sand with out-of-contract Jack Martin who has been sensationally dropped for the first time in his AFL career.
The prodigiously talented 24-year-old paid the price for a quiet outing in his first game back from a finger surgery.
Peter Wright, a former top-10 draft pick, has also been axed in a ruthless team selection meeting at the club’s Metricon Stadium headquarters last night.
Zorko had a hamstring scare against the Western Bulldogs on Sunday that saw him spend the final quarter and a half on the bench with his leg wrapped in ice.
Senior officials at the Lions pushed for the selectors to take a cautious approach with inform veteran and rest him for QClash 18 but Zorko was adamant he wanted to play.
“I always want to play – that’s what we get paid to do,’’ he said.
“I wanted to go out there and continue to lead my side and I told Fages (coach Chris Fagan) that.
“I did my rehab really well and it was probably more precautionary anyway, It was an injury I had never really sustained before, so it was good we took that approach.’’
If the All-Australian contender pulls up fine today from yesterday’s training session and retains his place in the side it would continue his remarkable run of resilience with injury.
The 30-year-old has never missed a game through injury.
Of the four games he missed in his 163-game career – two were through suspension, one came when his father Alex was seriously ill and another for the birth of his son Louis.
Zorko said it never entered his head that the derby against the club that famously passed on him after he had won four consecutive club championships at Broadbeach was a safe game to miss to recharge for finals.
“I have said it plenty of times before and JL (former Sun Jarryd Lyons) confirmed it earlier in the week, it doesn’t matter where we are ladder position wise, these are always tough games,’’ he said.
“Plenty of them go down to the wire, they are always hard and contested and we are expecting the exact same thing on Saturday.’’
Brisbane have named an unchanged line-up to the one that defeated the Bulldogs while the Suns have made the two changes to the side that suffered a heavy loss to Collingwood at the MCG.
For the Gold Coast Queenslander Caleb Graham will make his debut and fellow Suns academy graduate Jacob Heron also comes into the side.