THE BRISBANE Lions have paid tribute to leaders Dayne Beams and Tom Rockliff for defying the pain barrier after booking the stars in for end of season shoulder surgery.
Captain Beams and deputy Rockliff are expected to recover in time for November's pre-season after finally going under the knife for injuries they had been enduring for months.
Rockliff requires a full shoulder reconstruction for his injury initially sustained in round eight while Beams battled on from a complaint also suffered earlier in the year.
The pair finally booked surgeries after the Lions ended the season with the wooden spoon following their 51-point last round loss to North Melbourne at the Gabba.
"They were in a bit of pain," Lions senior physio Clint Frazer said.
"Dayne needed a few injections over a few weeks to get on the paddock but both boys did a good job.
"They made a good recovery and they were playing well with their injuries.
"That's part of being an AFL footballer. It's part of what you sign up for."
Frazer said Beams underwent surgery on Tuesday while Rockliff will go under the knife in a fortnight.
"Both should be back for pre-season training in November - we expect no problems out of that at all," Frazer said.
Beams is on the mend! Wishing our Captain a very speedy recovery! pic.twitter.com/kymUDfK9Ku
— Brisbane Lions (@brisbanelions) August 30, 2017
Meanwhile, unlucky defender Sam Skinner, 20, will undergo a third knee reconstruction in his short career in the coming weeks.
"Sam's obviously very familiar with the way the rehab program is here and the expectations there," Frazer said.
"He'll be fantastic once he returns.
"It's massively disappointing that he hurt his ACL.
"But the boys got around him and his spirits are high - there's no reason why he won't make a full recovery."
Frazer said Mitch Robinson (foot), Tom Bell (ankle) and Allen Christensen (collarbone) were all close to recovering from season-ending injuries.
"Allen Christensen is back in full training. He trained today with the NEAFL boys - he even did some contact work," Frazer said of Christensen, who missed the entire season due to an ongoing collarbone injury.