The club has added two development coaches and intends to employ a part-time psychologist as it beefs up the level of support available to players.
It's good news for the six players the club will draft within the first 34 selections on Thursday night and represents an opportunity for the club to start afresh under a new coach Justin Leppitsch.
Lions football manager Dean Warren said despite the frustration of losing five players - Sam Docherty, Patrick Karnezis, Billy Longer, Jared Polec and Elliot Yeo - during the trade period, he was now enthusiastic and upbeat about the club's direction.
"I'm very comfortable with where we are sitting at the moment in relation to the new staff we've brought in, the additional resources that we have got and [having] Justin Leppitsch as the senior coach," Warren told AFL.com.au.
The club has evaluated every part of its work in relation to player welfare and management of players.
It has learned plenty of lessons and recognised that inadequate resources were a significant issue, particularly with a playing list where 87 per cent of the players were from outside Queensland.
It has employed Mitch Hahn and Matthew Francis as development coaches to support Gary O'Donnell and managed to retain respected former player Simon Black on its coaching staff. Former Hawthorn and AIS-AFL Academy coach Peter Schwab has also been added to the mix.
Warren said the roles and the people filling them were ideal additions to the club.
"All of our development team will have a strong duty of care responsibility to our playing group – as does everyone – but like other clubs that are well resourced in the area, the development coaches play a really important role in the holistic development of the player, not just their skill acquisition and game education," Warren said.
Warren fronted the AFL Commission at the start of the week to explain the Lions' situation and what was in place to ensure the club was a good environment for players.
He told AFL.com.au that the club had placed five of last year's recruits in a house together – the Lions' Den – and all five players, Sam Mayes, Michael Close, Nick Hayes, Jordon Bourke and Marco Paparone, had thrived.
The club had also employed Alicia Whitelock at the beginning of 2013 to ensure professional development opportunities were made available to players and to support them in establishing networks outside the club. He said her role was vital and was beginning to make a difference as she worked on player welfare, alongside Manny Lynch.
Warren also said the club was aware not only of the need to ensure the environment was well-resourced, but also recruit players best suited to making the transition to Brisbane.
He heads to the draft with not only half a dozen picks under his arm but a catalogue of change that signals a fresh start.
Although all eyes will be on the Lions to ensure they can deliver, Warren said the club is up for the challenge: "I'm very enthusiastic and upbeat about where we are heading."
