NEW LION IS READY TO ROAR
JOE Daniher will play, but Brisbane’s other major offseason recruit, former Cat Nakia Cockatoo, will miss Saturday’s first major practice match against Gold Coast because of a hamstring injury.
The Lions play the Suns at Metricon Stadium this weekend, and again in an AAMI Community Series game on Monday week, in their only two pre-season hitouts against AFL opposition.
Border restrictions forced the AFL to limit nonMelbourne teams to matches only against their local rivals.
Lions coach Chris Fagan intends to field strong teams in both matches, with former Essendon star Daniher to enjoy plenty of game time over the next two weeks.
“We were looking at our training minutes the other day and our (internal) game minutes, and Joe was in the top two or three in the club,” Fagan said.
“He’s the one bloke that’s new that we need to get a bit of connection with.
“So he’ll play as much of the game as he can (today) and next week.”
But Fagan is taking a cautious approach with 24year-old Cockatoo, who hasn’t played an AFL match since Round 3 in 2018.
“He’s got a bit of a ‘hammy’ at the moment. We’re trying to recondition him so we’re not in any rush to get him out there playing,” Fagan said. “We’ll bring him along slowly. When you get new players to your club, you’ve got to learn a little bit about their bodies and what loads they can take. We’ve got a lot of good feedback on that over the last four or five weeks.
“He’s on a good pathway. He’s in good shape at the moment, and running really well, so he’ll be introduced back into skills this week.
“Whether he’s done enough work to be in line for selection in Round 1, only time will tell.”
Fagan said there was “pressure on for spots” ahead of the Lions’ Round 1 clash against the Sydney Swans on March 20 at the Gabba.