Brisbane coach Chris Fagan has laughed off fresh speculation that premiership forward Joe Daniher could return to AFL footy with a move to Melbourne, calling the suggestion “one of the great jokes of all time”.
Daniher, who retired at the end of last season aged just 30, was reportedly contacted by the Demons about a potential comeback. But Fagan, speaking ahead of Saturday’s QClash against the Gold Coast Suns, dismissed the rumours outright.
“It’s that time of the year where everything gets speculated on,” he said.
“How many times are people going to come up and say that Joey Daniher’s going back to Melbourne? It’s one of the great jokes of all time – it’ll never happen.”
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Demons coach joins in with ‘cheeky’ text
Even Melbourne coach Simon Goodwin seemed to acknowledge the light-hearted nature of the rumour, telling AFL 360 that he reached out to Daniher just in case.
“I might’ve sent him a cheeky text message just to check in with big Joe … but he laughed it off pretty quick,” Goodwin said.
Fagan had previously stated that if Daniher ever did return to the game, it would only be for the Lions. For now, Daniher’s former spot in Brisbane’s forward line is being rotated week to week, with the versatile Zac Bailey returning this weekend to replace the injured Kai Lohmann.
Brisbane, currently sitting second on the ladder, are preparing for a challenging encounter with a resurgent Suns side desperate to keep their finals hopes alive.