The Lions skipper who preceded Dayne Zorko has slammed his former teammate for his sledge at Demons player Harry Petty, writing it is ‘embarrassing’ Zorko is still captain.
Dayne Beams, who played 58 games for in between stints at Collingwood, played alongside Zorko in the midfield and was not impressed by his former teammate’s comments.
It was reported Zorko aimed a vile sledge at Petty referring to his sick mother during Brisbane’s 58-point thumping at the hands of on the weekend, leaving Petty in tears.
Petty’s mother has since exclusively revealed to she is in fact not sick – but it’s still clear Zorko still said something horrible enough to make a grown man cry on a football field.
Brisbane captain Dayne Zorko, pictured with partner Talia De Marco, has been under-fire for a personal sledge aimed at his opponent Harry Petty on the weekend
Former Lions skipper Dayne Beams has slammed his former teammate for a sledge
Zorko is now alleging he was provoked into making the personal sledge, a claim laughed off by his former teammate.
Beams circled a passage in an unidentified article which said: ‘At three-quarter time it was pretty evident that he made a beeline towards me and I thought ‘Wow what have I said here that has really triggered him off?’,’ Zorko said.
Beams then commented under the screenshot and voiced his incredulity at Zorko’s comments about the sledge.
Dayne Beams posted on his Instagram that he was not surprised his former teammate was embroiled in a sledging saga
‘Really?You wondered what you said? Embarrassing that he is still captain. Worst thing is I’m not even surprised,’ Beams wrote on his Instagram story.
Zorko took the captaincy reins midway through 2018 after Beams stepped down, before he subsequently moved to Collingwood the following year.
Beams had been rumoured to be returning to the Magpies, where he won the 2010 premiership, for much of the year.
He continually denied the rumours, including an impassioned speech at the club’s end-of-season Best and Fairest awards, before his trade request was officially lodged with the club just days later.
Dayne Beams (left) and Dayne Zorko (right) have been the last two captains at the Lions
Beams played just nine games before retiring in disgrace after issues with prescription drugs, deliberately crashing his car and a crippling gambling addiction, which he opened up more about on reality shows in retirement.
It was this chequered on and off-field history that led to many fans questioning why Beams, of all people, was lecturing Zorko on his behaviour.
‘Ah yes, Dayne Beams, the moral compass’ one fan wrote, while another commented: ‘Dayne Beams giving advice on player behaviour?LOL’.
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One footy fan also pointed out that given Beams’ battles with mental health, judi online terpercaya he probably ‘should know better than to add to the hype’.
Transitioning from Beams’ leadership to Zorko’s hasn’t exactly gone smoothly for the Lions.
Zorko was blasted just months after moving into the role, with AFL legend Tim Watson slamming his ‘terrible leadership’ after a continual run-in with Gold Coast tagger Touk Miller.
It included multiple occasions of Zorko either refusing to shake Miller’s hand, forcibly doing so sarcastically or abusing him both during and after the game.
Former teammates Dayne Beams (left) and Dayne Zorko (right)
Brisbane have so far resisted the multitude of calls to strip Zorko of the captaincy, insisting they are more concerned with his mental health, not sanctions for his behaviour.
‘To be perfectly honest, our goal right now is to make sure Dayne (Zorko) is okay …He came out and apologised on Saturday,’ Lions general manager Danny Daly told SEN earlier in the week.
The Lions will look to finally put the saga behind them when they take on Richmond in a blockbuster elimination final next Thursday at the Gabba.
