JONATHAN BROWN has been restricted to training in a moon boot, as his Lions teammates hit the track in the Brisbane heat.  

Brown was put in the club’s rehab group after the plantar fascia (foot) injury that wiped out the last month of his 2013 season flared up again.

The Lions have not put a timeframe on the 32-year-old co-captain re-joining the main group, but claim the setback is not serious.

Brown did stationary drills and some work on the bike while his teammates trained on Tuesday morning.

Like Brown, Daniel Merrett is also on restricted duties as he recovers from a broken ankle sustained in round 22 against the Western Bulldogs.

The resulting surgery required 10 screws to repair the damage, but the big fullback is now running strongly and expects to be in full training after Christmas.

Merrett has admitted to playing "grumpy" last season.

He was suspended for three games in round eight  following a sling tackle on Essendon's Michael Hurley, and gave away 25 free kicks in his 17 games, putting him in the top-40 in the AFL for free kicks against.

"It's probably old age, I think I'm getting grumpy," the 28-year-old said.

"I definitely got frustrated during games. I got suspended last year (2013) and overstepped the line. I've got to keep a hold on that. I'm not playing my best footy when I'm frustrated and lose my way."

Merrett was often swung forward by former coach Michael Voss, as he searched firstly for a forward line replacement for the injured Brown, and then a sidekick to the star skipper.

But Merrett is happiest in the backline, or the "bear cage" as he likes to call it.

"I think when I was losing the plot I was playing in the backline, so I think I was just frustrated the ball was coming in there a lot," he said.

"Generally think I'm a better backman than forward, but I had to fill a role for the team last year. "

Merrett said he would play pre-season games and be available for round one.

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