Brisbane Lions star Dayne Zorko has taken a thinly-veiled swipe at the AFL after accepting a fine for an incident with Collingwood’s Mason Cox that sparked backlash around the footy world. Zorko appeared to intentionally attack the face and glasses of Cox in Saturday night’s preliminary final victory for Brisbane, which booked their spot in the grand final against Geelong.
It came after Cox booted the first goal of the prelim for the Pies under the close attention of Zorko, and then celebrated by getting up in the face of the Lions firebrand. Zorko reacted by grabbing at Cox’s face and pulling the protective goggles down from the Collingwood tall’s eyes.
Lions star Dayne Zorko has shared his frustrations after being fined for grabbing at Mason Cox’s glasses in the AFL preliminary final win over Collingwood. Pic: Getty
Despite calls from outraged footy fans for Zorko to be banned for the grand final, the AFL whacked the Lions star with a $5000 fine instead. That went down to a $3125 fine after Zorko accepted an early guilty plea for misconduct, before he spoke out on SEN radio to explain his actions and share his frustrations about the sanction.
“If a seven-foot guy comes running at you in the streets what are you going to do?” Zorko asked on SEN. “It doesn’t really make sense to me that someone can initiate it, then you’re just standing up for yourself and protecting yourself.
“Should I have grabbed his glasses? Probably not. However, it is what it is. I mean, you can see the AFL are having such a great year with all this stuff that a $5000 fine seems suitable. Yeah, it is what it is. I don’t really care, I get to play in a grand final this week.”
Cox wears the protective goggles for safety reasons and previously revealed he could be permanently blinded if he receives a poke in the eye or heavy knock. Former Collingwood president Eddie McGuire has been outspoken in his outrage about opponents targeting the American in the past, after Crows player Ben Keays was fined $1500 for ripping Cox’s glasses off in 2023.
“What would have happened if he had jumped up and poked him in the eye and he went blind? McGuire posed at the time. “His career is over and he’s blind for life. How do you reckon that would go down? We would be stringing this guy up, not laughing.”
Footy fans were equally outraged after the Zorko incident, and many thought he should have been banned from playing in Saturday’s grand final. One fan posted on social media: “Zorko should be suspended for that. Seriously.” Another commented: “That is farcical!!! Give him a week.” While a third added: “People will laugh about this but messing with someone’s piece of protective equipment is gross. Zorko should and will be fined.”
Injured Lion Lachie Neale pushing to return for grand final
The Lions will be breathing easier after the veteran escaped suspension, with their attentions now focused on the fitness of superstar Lachie Neale. The dual Brownlow Medal winner aggravated a calf injury in the qualifying final defeat to the Cats but is pushing hard to prove his fitness for the rematch in Saturday’s decider.
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Zorko admitted the Lions’ medical team ‘didn’t give him much of a chance’ of playing, but says if anyone can prove them wrong it’s Brisbane’s co-captain. “He’s done everything he could possibly do so far,” Zorko said about Neale.
Brisbane Lions superstar Lachie Neale is pushing hard to return for the AFL grand final after aggravating a calf injury in the qualifying final defeat to Geelong. Pic: Getty
“I know the medical staff didn’t give him much of a chance but he’s looked after himself really well over the last few weeks. We always knew that if we got to this week that it would be a headline whether or not he’d be fit.
“He’ll have to do some pretty hard training this week I would imagine to get the final tick of approval. If he does that and gets through it, you’re not going to tell a dual Brownlow Medallist that you’re not playing.”