Brisbane defender Keidean Coleman is poised to make his long-awaited return from injury this weekend, with the 25-year-old named to feature in the Lions' VFL side for Sunday's clash against the Gold Coast Suns.
The club confirmed Coleman's selection during the week, with its injury report noting that the classy backman had been progressing well in his recovery.
"After experiencing some minor setbacks along the way, the 25-year-old has been training strongly in recent weeks," the report stated.
"Coleman was confirmed available for selection following Tuesday's training session at Brighton Homes Arena, with the defender likely to play VFL."
The VFL fixture will act as a curtain-raiser to the highly anticipated AFL QClash later that evening.
Coleman, a proud Dalabon and Jawoyn man, has not featured at any level since suffering a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in the Lions' Opening Round match against Carlton in 2024.
Brisbane senior coach Chris Fagan has been buoyed by Coleman's form at training, while also signalling a cautious approach to his reintegration into AFL ranks.
"It's been 14 months, so that's a long recovery, but he's looking good out on the track, which is great to see," Fagan said.
"It's a bit different if you're making your comeback via the preseason, you can have them straight in the side.
"But I think in this instance he's going to need to play a game or two on the reserves, at least a game anyway."
Coleman was a breakout performer for the Lions in 2023 and was among the best on ground in the club's grand final defeat to Collingwood, finishing with a team-high 26 disposals.
Elsewhere, Carlton forward Zac Williams is expected to be sidelined in the short term after sustaining a calf strain during the Blues' victory over Geelong last weekend.
The 30-year-old, who has endured a string of injuries across his 162-game career with both Carlton and Greater Western Sydney, will be monitored throughout the coming week and is considered likely to return in Round 10 or 11.
Hawthorn will also be without utility Karl Amon for their upcoming fixture, after he was placed in the AFL's concussion protocols following a head knock sustained in the third quarter of the Hawks' win over West Coast.
Providing an update midweek, High Performance Manager Peter Burge indicated Amon was in good spirits and had already commenced light duties.
"Karl's good, he came in and he's feeling better (and has) started some exercise on the bike," Burge said.
"He just had an incident late in the third quarter – he came off the bench and just made it known that he wasn't quite right from a knock.
"The doc assessed him, he was withdrawn from the game and is now in concussion protocols."
Meanwhile, Essendon forward Jade Gresham will undergo assessment in the coming days after leaving the field during Thursday night's match against North Melbourne with adductor soreness.
