Brisbane star Lachie Neale is leaving no stone unturned in his near-impossible bid to make it back to the finals, depending on how deep his side goes into September.
On top of the heavy qualifying final loss to Geelong, the Lions lost their two-time Brownlow medallist to a calf injury, the week he returned from a quad issue.
Everyone's heart sank when Neale abruptly stopped running on the MCG with the ball in hand, and since then, have quickly ruled a line through the reigning premiers returning to the top of the mountain.
But with a heartbeat still pounding after a comfortable semi-final win against Gold Coast at the Gabba, Neale is doing everything in his power to give himself, as he put it, "a one or two per cent" chance of playing.
"I've been sitting in one of these things (hyperbaric chambers) for a few hours a day, trying to do everything I can, just in case," Neale said on Triple M.
"But I'm just in there watching Netflix. And I'm willing to do it. I'm told it can help one or two per cent.
"Obviously, it won't hurt with the rehab if I can't get up for any game for the rest of the year anyway."
Brisbane and the AFL world don't see Neale returning before the end of September, with the club listing his estimated return as 2026.
But the ever-optimistic on-baller refuses to give up, offering the main reason why he'll continue to get to work every day in the pursuit of premiership success.
"I'm telling myself there's a chance," Neale said optimistically.
"I think everyone else has said I'm no chance, and medically, it's going to be pretty tough.
"I'm just giving myself every single chance. For me, I'm one of those people, that if I didn't do everything right to give myself a one or two per cent chance, then in 20 years time, if the boys happen to make the grand final, and I look back and thought, imagine if I did something differently or tried everything, and it worked, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself.
"I'm absolutely smashing this rehab, and we'll see what happens. It's a very, very slim chance."
After the Lions overcame a raging Suns outfit in front of their home crowd, they will face Collingwood at the MCG before potentially reaching the final Saturday of September.
His coach, Chris Fagan, said the club will have to get through their clash with the Magpies before assessing Neale's situation further.
"There's no doubt he'll be trying. We all know Lachie, he'll be doing his best," the Lions coach said after his side's semi-final win.
"He won't be right for next week, but if we're able to get through, and that's a big if, I think he's trying to make sure he's fit enough to play.
"But we'll just see how it goes."
Brisbane and Collingwood will meet at the MCG on Saturday at 5:15pm (AEST) for a spot in the grand final against either Geelong or Hawthorn.
