BRISBANE’S improvement under Chris Fagan has taken many forms, but perhaps its resilience stands atop the tree, and this has rarely been on show more than Saturday’s win over Sydney.

In the week prior to facing the Swans they missed training sessions due to ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred, saw Linc McCarthy suffer a second ruptured ACL, helped Sam Day deal with the passing of his father, flew to Sydney two days earlier than usual and lost Charlie Cameron (calf) on the morning of the match.

Once the ball bounced, Kai Lohmann (ankle) left the field in the opening quarter and Brandon Starcevich suffered his third concussion in eight months during the third term.

Yet, the reigning premier overturned a four-goal deficit to win against a hungry opponent and set their season off on a winning note.

Although the Lions have never been poor at dealing with adversity, their resilience in handling unexpected situations has blossomed as they’ve collectively matured.

In round eight last year against Gold Coast – the other contender for best ‘backs against the wall’ win under Fagan – Brisbane lost Starcevich in the warm-up, McCarthy and Darcy Gardiner to ACLs and Noah Answerth to concussion in the first half.

Yet, with a 2-5 win-loss record to their name, they won.

Premiership hero Callum Ah Chee told AFL.com.au it had a hallmark of the club in recent years.

“We’ve definitely matured as a group and when things don’t go our way, we don’t get down in the dumps,” he said.

“We just go with the flow. I think we just have so much belief in what we’re capable of that when little things don’t go right, we can still win a game, even if it’s not the prettiest of ways.

“We’ve seen every scenario. In-game, we’ve played in so many tight games, big deficits, big leads, we’ve got injuries, but we always seem to find a way to overcome that and stick to what we believe in.”

He’s right, the Lions have now seen almost every scenario possible, walking the finals tightrope, including unlikely come-from-behind wins over Greater Western Sydney and Geelong on the road, to storm to last year’s flag.

Ah Chee said the club’s leadership group had to take a lot of the credit, led by co-captains Harris Andrews and Lachie Neale, with vice-captains Josh Dunkley and Hugh McCluggage.

Against Sydney, the forward line that finished the game was a shell of the one Fagan had drawn up earlier in the week.

Day and Cameron didn’t play and Lohmann was out. In came Darcy Fort, Levi Ashcroft went from the sub role to star on debut, while Conor McKenna took off the vest to replace Lohmann and fitted in forward of the ball.

“That’s the great thing with our team, no matter what happens, guys are ready to step up,” Ah Chee said.

“We’ve got so much belief that whatever happens, we’ve got blokes out on the field that can just fill a role and do their bit for the team.

“It was a great win to show we can overcome anything thrown our way.”

Ah Chee kicked a goal from his 14 disposals to start a campaign that follows the best of his nine previous years in the League.

Once stationed permanently forward last season, the 27-year-old was integral to the Lions’ success, kicking 27 goals that included four in the decider.

“I’ve come back with a lot of confidence this year,” he said.

‘There was a glimpse of what I can produce on the field towards the end of last year. I think it’s more consistency in that level of football throughout the year that I’m aiming for now.”