Darren Lockyer admits he'll be fair game if he plays in Friday's National Rugby League preliminary final with a fractured cheekbone but his Brisbane coach Anthony Griffin says that's not an open invitation for Manly to illegally target him.
Broncos five-eighth Lockyer, who trained lightly on Tuesday morning, will play against the Sea Eagles if he makes it through a special contact tackling session in Sydney on Thursday morning.
That will tell him if his surgically rebuilt left cheek is as strong as his current mindset.
Griffin said he expected Manly to target their inspirational captain, but is only concerned that it's not illegal or late and he expects referees to clamp down on anything illegal.
Manly coach Des Hasler says Lockyer would inevitably get caught up in the physicality of the game and he's got to make key tackles.
Lockyer spoke on Tuesday like a man who'd already made up his mind to ignore medical warnings and play in the match.
He's been told it would take another direct hit to the affected area for him to suffer further complications, something he believes is a minimal chance of occurring given it hasn't happened previously during his record-breaking 355-game career.
The surgeon told him a patient would normally have six weeks off with this operation so the decision's going to come down to him and if there's any people out there who are critical about it all, they can direct it towards him and not towards anyone else, the club or the doctor.
