LIONS WEIGH UP OPTIONS
BRISBANE Lions forward Daniel Mcstay has been cleared of a bone break but the club is still waiting on scans to determine the extent of damage to his injured ankle.
The week after losing key forward Joe Daniher for four to six weeks with a shoulder injury, Brisbane’s attack was dealt another blow when Mcstay injured his ankle in the 75-point win over West Coast at the Gabba on Saturday night.
But Mcstay’s injury comes as the Lions weigh up a potential AFL comeback for tall forward Eric Hipwood from an ACL injury this week.
Mcstay was taken to hospital to assess the injury on Saturday night after his left ankle was trapped in a marking contest in the first quarter.
X-rays revealed there was no fracture, but the Lions said Mcstay would have more scans on Monday to determine how much other damage to the ankle had been done.
“I’ve got my fingers crossed that it’s not too bad. It didn’t look great so we’ll just have to wait and see,” coach Chris Fagan said.
“When it rains, it pours. If you are going to have injuries, you’d like them to be spread a little bit across the team and not have two of your best tall forwards out.”
Mcstay has kicked 10 goals so far this season for the Lions, who face the Crows at Adelaide Oval on Saturday.
Fagan said Hipwood, who has not played since round 17 last year, was now available to play.
The only question was whether he came straight back into the AFL team or returned via the VFL.
“I’m sitting on the fence still but I’ll be guided a little bit by our medical people,” Fagan said.
“He’s playing this week, that was always the plan.
“So, he’s available, it’s just a matter of whether we pick him.”