THE CRIES to recruit a mature key forward are growing louder at the Gabba, with Brisbane Lions full-back Daniel Merrett adding his voice to the chorus.
The morning after losing to the Sydney Swans by 21 points, Merrett was in agreement with his coach Justin Leppitsch that the Lions were missing a key focal point in attack.
Match Report: Swans too strong
While Swans stars Lance Franklin and Kurt Tippett kicked six of their team's 10 goals in the victory, the Lions did not get a single goal from their tall timber.
"I could probably show you 14 other games to show we're crying out for a key forward as well," Leppitsch lamented after Sunday night's loss. "This isn't on its own.
"If we have a nice big, solid target, it can fill the team with a lot more confidence too."
Speaking at the team's recovery session at South Bank on Monday morning, Merrett said although he was confident the Lions' young talls would develop, mature help would be handy.
"I'd love to have a proven forward come in, but they don't grow on trees do they, so it might be a bit hard," Merrett said.
"We've just got to persist. I think we've got the guys there, we've just got to give them game time and let them improve."
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Over the past three years the Lions have chased a number of targets, including Franklin and Tippett, but come up short of finding a long-term replacement for retired champion Jonathan Brown.
They are interested in pursuing out-of-contract Gold Coast powerhouse Charlie Dixon, who seems to fit their bill nicely.
The Suns are keen to keep the 24-year-old.
The Lions have been dogged by injuries to their young forwards this season, with Michael Close (ACL) playing just two games and Jono Freeman returning to the NEAFL at the weekend after glute and ankle problems.
Merrett's return from an ongoing hamstring injury for his first game since round one had an instant impact in defence.
It freed up Justin Clarke, Harris Andrews and Marco Paparone for less challenging roles, and Leppitsch speculated a mature forward could have the same impact at the other end of the ground.
"I'm really excited about our defence at the moment," Merrett said.
"It's a good young squad down there and the boys chopped me out a few times.
"I'm looking forward to those guys developing and I'm going to try and hang around as long as possible."
