Brisbane veteran Dayne Zorko lasted just five minutes against the Western Bulldogs in his first match back from a hamstring injury before hobbling from the field.
The 33-year-old was subbed out of Thursday’s contest at the Gabba after just 10 minutes – the fastest medical substitute made in 2022.
But the veteran says he is still a chance to face Essendon next Sunday.
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“It was a bit of an awkward incident,” he told Fox Footy post-match.
“Not something you really train for diving and taking a slips catch. I just sort of overreached a bit.
“We called it early.
“(The initial thought is it’s) certainly nowhere near as bad as it was last time.
“(I’m) hoping to get back out there next Sunday.”
Zorko missed the loss to Melbourne last week, and spent 19 days on the sidelines with a hamstring injury suffered against the Saints in Round 13.
Fox Footy’s Jon Ralph said the club was confident it made the right decision bringing him back against the Dogs on Thursday night.
“Brisbane legitimately believe they’ve done everything possible to bring him back at the right possible time,” Ralph reported.
“He trained last week. (Brisbane footy boss) Danny Daly said (Zorko) would have played last week if it wasn’t a midweek game so they gave him more time.”
Zorko said the club opted for a “really cautious route” with the latest injury scare.
“I didn’t really feel it go, but it was certainly a little bit of pain where I had the previous injury,” he conceded.
“We thought the risk was probably a little too much to take going back out there.
“We decided to go the really cautious route. In hindsight, it worked out really well.
“It was probably a smart decision in the end.”
Brisbane coach Chris Fagan said he couldn’t explain Zorko’s latest setback.
“I know our medical people did everything right. He passed every test and ran the speeds he needed to run and he did that four or five days ago,” he said.
“It’s hard to know.”
The club will send both Zorko and teammate Daniel Rich for scans after the latter also exited the game early.
Rich reported tightness in his hamstring in the third term and didn’t return to the field in the 41-point win.
Fagan said both players appeared “unlikely” to play in Round 16.
For the Bulldogs, Cody Weightman needed to pass a concussion test in the first term after attempting to lay a heavy tackle.
Adam Treloar is one to watch on the injury front, according to Jon Ralph.
Ralph said Treloar was “a bit tight in the hamstring” and finished the game early.
