BRISBANE recruit Joe Daniher has not missed a beat since his off-season move, including getting the better of All-Australian defender Harris Andrews in match simulation last Friday.
Injury cruelled the final three seasons of Daniher's time at Essendon, restricting him to just 15 games in that span.
However, after playing four of the final five matches for the Bombers in 2020, the towering key forward has hit the ground running for his new club.
Daniher stayed in Brisbane during the off-season to train with his new teammates and has not missed a session since the pre-season officially resumed in early January.
Speaking on Thursday after inking his own two-year contract extension, Lions coach Chris Fagan said he could not be more pleased with Daniher's progress.
He said despite Daniher playing on a superior team in the match simulation, his four goals kicked on Andrews was a promising sign.
"He demonstrated his great capacity to play the game. He's a natural footballer, plays with instinct and intelligence and that all showed out the other night," Fagan said.
Suns out ?? Socks up ?? pic.twitter.com/pPeCAwRVMy
— Brisbane Lions (@brisbanelions) January 29, 2021
"Fingers crossed he's over his injury challenges and we can see the great player he is."
Brisbane's other off-season recruit, former Cat Nakia Cockatoo, has also ticked every box but Fagan offered a word of caution before penciling both in for big years.
"We shouldn't jump the gun because there's always challenges with players and anything can go wrong at any time," he said.
"They train really well, they're enthusiastic people, they bring energy to the place and we're very excited by what we've seen to this point in time."