DAYNE Zorko says the end is close. Not that he's playing like it.
Having turned 36 in February, there's an understanding at Brisbane that Zorko is playing through the twilight years of his career. And yet, at the same time, he doesn't look anything like a player whose finishing line is approaching.
This weekend, Zorko will equal Luke Power on 282 games. It brings him to within 40 appearances of Simon Black's all-time Brisbane record. To break it, Zorko would likely require another deep finals run this season, then to play the majority of next season as well.
It's not beyond the realms of possibility, especially given the scintillating manner in which Zorko has started the 2025 campaign. But to even come close is still quite remarkable, given the Lions veteran was overlooked in his draft year – and then for five seasons after that – and didn't earn his AFL debut until he was 23 years old.
For now, the conversations between Zorko and Brisbane coach Chris Fagan remain ongoing. They likely will throughout the entire season. But the Lions playmaker couldn't be doing much more to add another season to his memorable career.
"I obviously talk to 'Fages' all the time," Zorko told AFL.com.au over the weekend.
"We've got a lot of good players in our reserves that are coming through. We've got Kiddy Coleman still to fit back into our side and a lot of young running half-backs that I'm keeping out of the side at the moment.
"I don't know what the conversation will look like at the end of the year or going forward, but I know the energy that I'm producing at the moment … I love doing it for this team. We'll just wait and see what happens at the end of the season, but I obviously understand that the end is close."
Zorko is a five-time best and fairest, a two-time All-Australian, and was a key part of Brisbane's 2024 premiership side. But this season is already shaping up as though it will replicate his best years in the game, if not exceed them.
He had 24 disposals and two goals against Sydney in round one, won 28 touches and 11 marks against West Coast in round two, 28 disposals and a goal against Geelong in round three, then 23 disposals and six score involvements in last Saturday's latest win against Richmond.
According to Champion Data's AFL Player Ratings points – the stats guru's most definitive metric to analyse influence – Zorko is Brisbane's second-ranked player this season, ahead of younger bucks like Josh Dunkley, Will Ashcroft and Lachie Neale, and behind only Hugh McCluggage.
"I feel really good," Zorko said. "When we get in ping pong games like we did (against Richmond on Saturday), I start questioning it a little bit. But the group is still keeping me young.
"I was a little bit of a late bloomer coming into the AFL system and I've really enjoyed the new role I have. It's really freshened me up. We've got a fantastic medical team at the club as well that prepare me in the best way possible.
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"I genuinely feel – and I guess my GPS numbers resemble this – but I really feel I'm at the top of my game at the moment. It's weird to say that as a 36-year-old, but I'm really confident in not only my body but also what I'm producing.
"I don't know how long I'll play for, but I think Craig McRae said the other night we wouldn't put any ceilings on players anymore. I might keep replaying that to 'Fages' so he doesn't pass me on too soon."
Zorko's longevity has proved critical for Fagan in a number of ways. Last week, as Brisbane looked to snap a 16-year drought against Richmond at the MCG, the Lions coach turned to his senior players as he sought motivation.
Zorko was one of eight current Brisbane players who featured in a 93-point belting at the hands of Richmond at the 'G in 2018, when the Lions were held to their lowest ever score of 2.5 (17) on a dismal afternoon.
Alongside teammates like Cam Rayner, Harris Andrews, Jarrod Berry, McCluggage, Eric Hipwood, Zac Bailey and Charlie Cameron – who also featured that day – Zorko was determined to prove a point last Saturday.
"We spoke about it on Friday," Zorko said.
"'Fages' did a great job with his presentation. One of the last times, in 2018, Richmond kept us to 17 points. It was the third-lowest score in AFL history and definitely our lowest as a club.
"We understood that we hadn't beaten a Richmond side here at the MCG for a long time. But, also, they're in a similar position now as to what we were in 2018. It was quite interesting to see how the scripts had flipped somewhat.
"It was a driving motivation. There were only seven or eight of us that played that afternoon still here, so a lot of the players couldn't use that. But, certainly for the guys who were out there that had played, we were really humiliated that day.
"It was a real key force for us, to get our backsides together and start driving some momentum and the club forward. Sometimes, you need those losses and I think we've benefited from it and learned a lot from that game."
Brisbane hasn't entirely been at its premiership best to start the season – and wasn't again on Saturday – but still moved to 4-0 on the campaign following the 28-point victory over Richmond.
Having already overturned a 23-point deficit to beat Sydney, a 31-point deficit to overcome West Coast, then a 32-point deficit to see off Geelong, Zorko said Brisbane could take more learnings from the manner in which it eased past Richmond.
"I'm actually really proud with the way we've started the year," Zorko said.
"We've had a lot of challenges, there's been a lot of hurdles. Opening Round was disappointing for us because we were really set to play, and we've had our backs against the wall in almost every single game we've played.
"I'm really proud of the courage and resilience we've showed to get the results. But we just haven't nailed a four-quarter performance, or even a three-quarter performance, that we can gather some momentum with. Obviously, winning is fantastic. But we've got a lot of work to do I reckon."
