FORMER Brisbane Lions captain Jed Adcock will play out the rest of the season despite being told this week by coach Justin Leppitsch that his contract would not be renewed for 2016.
According to Brisbane Lions CEO Greg Swann, the 29-year-old wanted to know his future before the season ended but AFL.com.au understands he was still disappointed at the decision.
"He came to Leppa (Leppitsch) and said he wanted to know what was happening next year. Leppa told him we're going down the youth path and his spot wasn't guaranteed," Swann told AFL.com.au.
"He'd had to make a decision. He's a fantastic servant for the club."
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Adcock has played 203 games for the club and was the joint club captain in 2013 with former great Jonathan Brown, before taking the reins solo in 2014.
Tom Rockliff took over from him as skipper this season.
Twice placed in the best and fairest in his career, Adcock has played every game in 2015 and has fallen victim to the Lions' determination to rebuild the talent through the draft.
The Lions look certain to lose James Aish, who was the club's first pick in the 2013 NAB AFL National Draft, at the end of the season after just 32 games.
He is sidelined for the rest of the season with a finger injury while ruckman Matthew Leuenberger also appears headed for the exit after 108 games.
Leuenberger will miss this week with a knee injury. Whether he recovers in time to play before the season ends remains uncertain.
Reliable midfielder Jack Redden is also understood to be weighing up his future with the club aware he becomes a free agent at the end of 2016.
The Lions have had a tumultuous period in recent seasons losing five highly credentialed players at the end of 2013 in Sam Docherty, Patrick Karnezis, Elliot Yeo, Billy Longer and Jared Polec.
They also dealt with the retirement of Brown last year but looked to have turned things around when they attracted high-priced recruits Dayne Beams and Allen Christensen and gained delisted free agent Mitch Robinson.
However injuries and poor form see the Lions second bottom with three wins and Swann has indicated the list will be built from the bottom up.
They are well-placed to secure one of the draft's highly rated talls, Jacob Weitering or Josh Schache, while they also have access to academy pair Ben Keays and Eric Hipwood.
