'Hard to believe': Zorko reveals 'little secret' that nearly ended flag ...

Premiership star Dayne Zorko has revealed how he contemplated stepping aside to “play the kids” amid a mid-season form slump in 2024.

Speaking to 3AW post-game, the 35-year-old described the plethora of emotions he was feeling after a 10-goal smoking of Sydney on the last Saturday in September.

“I’ll let you in on a little secret,” Zorko begun by saying.

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“At Round 12 (when) we had the bye - myself, Joe (Daniher) and Ryan Lester sat down with Harris Andrews and we said: ‘Might be time we start playing the kids, we might have to turn to next year. ‘If that’s the case, it’s been fun.’

“But we came up with a real clear plan that day that we weren’t going to go down that path; there was so much football to go.

“Every week for the last 14 weeks, we’ve caught up as a group - we added Josh Dunkley to that frame… and we just talk through everything every week, we catch up for coffee. We really wanted to make a difference and impact this season.”

After quarter time, the Swans never stood a chance, as Chris Fagan’s side stormed to score six unanswered goals heading into half-time and a 46-point chokehold over the minor premiers.

Zorko has been teased by the ultimate AFL success for 13 years, but in 2024 - he and his Lions have finally done it (Photo by Darrian Traynor/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

And while the Lions’ eventual output wasn’t surprising, there was an element of underdog about Brisbane this grand final - and Zorko lapped it up, knowing full well that their best would win it all.

“One thing we knew was our best football was certainly going to get the job done - and today was a great example of that,” Zorko continued.

“It was the best preparation I’ve ever seen our group go through we got down early… everyone was recovered, everyone was fresh. I’ve never seen so many boys in ice baths, saunas, steam rooms, hot spas - it was the best training session of the year on Thursday.

“I was really confident that we were going to come out and put in a performance like this today; obviously it would have been hard to believe given Sydney’s run but I certainly believed that we could do it.

“We’ve had a lot of heartache over the last five years for moments where we wish we had them back.

“Today, we got every single moment right.”

Zorko hugs Cameron Rayner before the post-game medal presentation (Photo by Darrian Traynor/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)Source: Getty Images

Zorko himself earned his second All-Australian jacket in 2024, and his first in seven years after stepping up massively in the half-back role left vacant this season by the injured Keidean Coleman.

Previously with a reputation of sorts for being unable to stay on the park as much as he’d like due to injury, Zorko played every single game in 2024 to show that despite playing in his 13th season of AFL - he’s now still more than up for the challenge.

“I thought I let myself down during the Covid period, 2020, 2021 and 2022. My body was not at 100 per cent; not even at 50 per cent to be honest. “I sat down with ‘Fages’ and the list manager at the end of 2022 and said: ‘Look, if I’m going to play - I’ve got to get myself right’,” Zorko revealed.

“I knew there was no guarantee last year that I would come in and play in the team.”

The Lions’ premiership is the club’s first in 21 years, and was the ultimate redemption after a heartbreaking loss to Collingwood in 2023.