BRISBANE Lions champion Simon Black says he is using coach Michael Voss as a sounding board as he tries to manage his injured knee.

He is hopeful of lining up against St Kilda on Saturday night after being an 11th hour withdrawal from the Lions' loss against the Sydney Swans at the weekend when he aggravated his knee during the warm up.

It was the same knee he initially injured rocking his baby son Lachlan, which flared up against North Melbourne in round nine and cost him successive matches against West Coast and Hawthorn.

Black said Voss had been a huge help in dealing with his knee issues.

"I had a good chat to Vossy about it the other day and being able to manage it throughout the week and as the weeks go along.

"He managed his knee for a number of years so he's certainly a good sounding board to bounce off in that regard."

Black said he had not run since Saturday and still was unsure of his playing availability.

"I'll train later in the week and we'll make a decision then," Black said.

"I'm hopeful. I don't know if I can say 50-50 or what, I really don't know."

The 2002 Brownlow medallist said the knee became "angry and inflamed" during the warm up and he had to make a snap decision to withdraw.

"Getting through 14 [kilometres] on it, I didn't want to be a liability to the side so I made that decision," he said.

"It's not like I've got a degenerate knee or anything; it's an annoyance. It just needs to settle down."

The 33-year-old veteran of 306 games said the final decision would come down to a consultation with the coaching staff and the club doctors.

The Lions are already short a number of key players for the Saints match, with versatile Ash McGrath (hamstring) ruled out for the season on Monday and in-form small defender Mitch Golby (foot) still on the sidelines.

Michael Whiting covers Brisbane Lions news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_mikewhiting