MICHAEL Voss has defended his decision to start Brownlow medallist Simon Black as the Brisbane Lions' substitute, saying his ageing body has to be nursed through the rest of the season.
In a move described by former teammate and Fox Footy commentator Alastair Lynch as "staggering", Black started Saturday night's match against Richmond in the green substitute's vest.
He entered the game midway through the third quarter with the Lions down by 39 points.
Black had an immediate impact, and his 15 disposals helped reduce the margin to just 14 points early in the final term, before the Lions faded again to lose by 48.
Voss said 33-year-old Black was still having troubles with a knee injury that had cost him three matches this season.
"Blacky's at a stage where we've got to manage him," Voss said.
"The choice is that, or we don't play him at all and I'd rather have Blacky for a quarter-and-a-half than not at all.
"Simon Black is a champion of the game. His value is unquestioned in our football team. Would I like to play him for four quarters? Yes I would. But we've also got to manage his body until the end of the season."
Richmond coach Damien Hardwick admitted he was surprised Black was used as a sub, but said he looked a little "lame" in patches.
"He's an amazing player, he had 15 touches in a quarter-and-a-half. We ended up tagging him in the end," Hardwick said.
Voss said after a trip back from Perth and a six-day break, he either had to rest Black or use him as a sub.
It's a move the coach hinted at less than two weeks ago, when he said Black may be used in shorter bursts if he was to play on in 2013.
"He's got challenges during the week. He doesn't train much but we want him out on the park," Voss said.
"We'll try everything to make sure we can get some value out of him and every now and then that might mean we've got to play him as a sub.
"As a coach, I want him out there, there's no question on that."
Voss said the younger Lions midfielders had to stand up and take ownership of the team, which they clearly didn't against the Tigers, being smashed 51-37 in the clearances.
The Lions' coach said if they were still relying on Black to lead the way, they were not progressing as a team.
"Once the scoreboard was gone, so were we, and that was probably the most disappointing part of the night," Voss said.
"Once we find ourselves in a non-winnable position, we're just stopping. We can't afford to sit at the end of games and give away the scoreboard like we have. It's just unacceptable."
Michael Whiting covers Brisbane Lions news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_mikewhiting
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL
