“I don’t know if you could ever replace Joey, he’s a pretty special athlete,” Day said.
Re-aligning with former Gold Coast coach Stuart Dew, who will lead the Lions forward line in 2025, the 32-year-old insisted he held no hard feelings towards the Suns.
“I’m just looking forward to being my own player. Hopefully I can come in and make the rest of the guys around me better and that’s what I’ve prided myself on for most of my career.”
He has declared his intention to play on beyond the end of his one-year deal.
Day’s time at the Gold Coast was curtailed by a series of injuries, limiting him to 18 AFL games in four seasons.
King could relate to Day’s physical tumult – the Gold Coast sensation was forced to contend with a season-ending ACL rupture on the eve of the 2022 campaign, before going on to play 42 games across the next two years and kicking 95 goals.
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The 24-year-old said his time on the sidelines gave him a renewed outlook on the game and what he wanted to achieve.
“From all reports [Day has had] a good off-season, and he’s in good nick now. [Our rehab time] didn’t overlap as much, but he’s done a fair bit of time in rehab and had a pretty tough run over the last few years, so fingers crossed he stays healthy,” King said.
“I definitely felt a bit rusty for a while after having an injury for a year, but I certainly had an appreciation for how lucky I am to be playing footy, and how much I love the game.
“That was the positive thing out of it.”
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