Jarrod Berry could make a remarkable return from a knee injury this weekend after he was named in Senior Coach Chris Fagan’s 26-man squad to take on the Melbourne Demons this Sunday at The Gabba.

Berry has not played since Round 9’s win over the Adelaide Crows. Following that match he was required to have an operation to remove a Baker’s cyst on his right knee. He was expected to be out for six to eight weeks, but the 21-year-old has made an extraordinary recovery and will be fit to play after just five weeks on the sidelines.

Fagan told media this morning Berry is ready to go.

“He’s had a good block of training the last three weeks,” he said.

“Probably was ready to go last week, truth be known, but we just wanted to make sure he’d done enough work to be ready.”

Zac Bailey, who has suffered two hamstring injuries this year, will make his return to the senior side after being named in the forward line. Bailey’s last game was Round 8’s loss to the Bulldogs in Ballarat. Last week he made his return to the footy field via the NEAFL team and was quick to make an impression. He had 26 disposals, four tackles and two goals in their 128-point win over Sydney University.

Sam Skinner has been named on the extended bench. If named in tomorrow’s final team, this will be the 21-year-old’s first AFL game since his emphatic debut in 2017 where he kicked two goals.

Ben Keays has also been named on the bench after producing a strong performance in the NEAFL where he kicked four goals, laid eight tackles and had 24 disposals. Keays’ last game for the Lions was Round 11’s win over Hawthorn.

Joining Skinner and Lyons on the extended bench are Allen Christensen, Ryan Lester, Oscar McInerney, Brandon Starcevich and Corey Lyons.

If named in tomorrow’s team, this would be Starcevich’s first senior game in 2019, after playing four AFL matches last year. The 19-year-old battled a hamstring injury at the start of this season but has shown strong form in his past four matches in the NEAFL.

If Lyons is named in the final team, he will be making his AFL debut. This is his third season at the Lions and he has built a strong case for a debut because of his form in the NEAFL competition this year. He is averaging more than 20 disposals a game and is tough around the contest, like his older brother Jarryd.

The Lions have not defeated Melbourne since 2014. Although the Demons have only won four games in 2019, Fagan is expecting a tough clash.

“They will play with great ferocity as they always do,” he said.

“They’ve actually been in really good form the last five weeks.

“They play a hard, contested brand of footy so that’s what we’re readying ourselves for. We know if we want to beat them, we have to at least match them in that area.”

The match marks the Lions’ first home game in three weeks.

In: Zac Bailey, Ben Keays, Jarrod Berry, Sam Skinner, Brandon Starcevich, Corey Lyons
Out:  Jacob Allison (Omitted), Rhys Mathieson (Omitted)