Lions star Will Ashcroft insists there’s no panic in Brisbane’s camp as the back-to-back premiers bid to kick-start their campaign by beating St Kilda at Marvel Stadium on Saturday.
The weekend’s clash can’t come soon enough for the Lions, who will resume from a bye after losing their opening two matches of the season to the Western Bulldogs and Sydney Swans.
It was a depleted Brisbane outfit that lost by 44 points to Sydney less than two weeks ago, with suspended trio Harris Andrews, Zac Bailey and Darcy Gardiner and injured pair Hugh McCluggage and Logan Morris all missing the defeat.
Of the quintet, co-captain and key defender Andrews is the only certain absentee on Saturday, as he has another two games of his suspension remaining.
“We’re pretty eager to get back out there after the start,” Ashcroft said on Tuesday.
“You don’t want to be in this position, but it’s not panic stations yet.
“Someone like Harris, you probably need two or three guys to contribute to fill that role, (but) you don’t really have a much of a choice.
“He’s out and that’s what it is, so you need someone else to come in and have the confidence to fill that role.”
The Lions have also lost rookie Daniel Annable, who made his AFL debut against the Swans, with a shoulder injury set to sideline him for up to four months.
Midfielder Ashcroft said he needed to lift on his own form.
“I can definitely improve on the stuff I’ve done so far,” he said.
“To have that reset has helped me get back to the focuses I need to get to. I probably had a broad mindset coming in (to the season).”
There is likely to be some added spice to Saturday’s clash, with the Saints having not been afraid in recent times to express their thoughts on the so-called advantages Queensland and NSW have with the draft system and, more specifically, the father-son and academy rules.
Lions coach Chris Fagan also questioned the significant amount of money St Kilda spent on Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera and Tom De Koning, saying it was a “danger” to the rest of the competition.
It led to a response from Saints coach Ross Lyon, who queried Fagan’s “motivations”.
Ashcroft, one of three father-son picks in Brisbane’s team, said the banter was “good for footy” and “part of the game”.
“That’s the way it’s trended off the field where there’s a lot more media interest and discussion around that sort of thing and people throw comments around,” the two-time Norm Smith medallist said.
“It’s good fun. I quite enjoy it.”
