After narrowly avoiding the wooden spoon with a 17^th place finish ahead of Carlton, O'Brien says there is no reason why the Lions can't complete a Western Bulldogs-style turnaround.

“We were hit really hard with injuries this year,” he said.

“But if we get everyone on the park we can climb up the ladder.

“We've seen sides like Port Adelaide and the Western Bulldogs achieve success with their younger players, and I think we're capable of that as well.

“I don't think it will take too much for us to turn it around.”

O'Brien made headlines this year after he and Lions senior coach Justin Leppitsch came to blows at a NEAFL game early in the season.

He quickly put it behind him though, playing a total of eight senior games in 2015. 

He also won the reserves best and fairest award. 

While injuries had cruelled the Lions, O'Brien said it could ultimately be a good thing.

“You don't want to have to play all 47 blokes on your list in a season,” he said.

“But opportunity always comes hand in hand with injury, and to have so many young players get a run will benefit us in the long run.

“We saw that with guys like Harris Andrews taking their chances and playing some really good footy.”

As for his own ambitions, O'Brien was under no illusions as to what he needed to do to make the grade in the seniors.

“I need to be at the top of my game,” he said.

“I want to play more consistently at the top level, nobody likes playing in the twos.

“You can't play in just one position in the modern game, and my versatility was something I wanted to improve.

“I played eight games compared to five last year, so it was definitely a good year for me in that sense.”