BRISBANE had the most settled line-up in the AFL last season, but faces at least one selection headache ahead of round one.
In a remarkable year of great management and some good fortune, 10 Lions played all 24 games, while another eight lined up at least 20 times.
With a team winning consistently and having almost no injuries, there was not too many tough selections to be made by Chris Fagan and his match committee.
However, the retirement of Luke Hodge has not only left a gap in experience, but on a practical front, left a hole in the backline.
Brisbane recruited Hodge's former Hawthorn teammate Grant Birchall in the off-season, along with gifted Gold Coast flyer Callum Ah Chee, who have both been slated to play in the back six (or seven, if you count one defender on the bench).
All-Australian Harris Andrews is a lock, While Darcy Gardiner, Marcus Adams and Daniel Rich also appear to have a mortage on their positions.
That leaves Birchall, Ah Chee, quality ball user Alex Witherden and impressive second-year stopper Noah Answerth to fight for three spots.
"There's been some serious competition down there and everyone's improving because of that pressure for spots," Andrews said.
"It's going to be interesting to see how the coaches go with that decision."
Coach Fagan has made no secret of the fact he wants speed in that part of the ground to complement the Lions' quality ball users, which would seem to play in Ah Chee's favour.
Against Port Adelaide on Sunday, both Birchall and Ah Chee looked, understandably, a little hesitant at times, although they weren't on their own.
Andrews said the defensive group had worked hard during the pre-season to integrate the new faces, and that playing games would fast-track them into a new system.
PRE-SEASON FIXTURE Check out your team's Marsh Community Series games
"Last year we were renowned for our aggressive ball movement and we were probably too conservative on Sunday," he said.
"There's plenty of learnings to be had from the game … we'll be better for it."
