Callum Ah Chee's brilliant September run has cured any remaining symptoms of impostor syndrome and spurred the Brisbane forward to "another level".
The 27-year-old was instrumental in the Lions' remarkable 2024 premiership run, finally owning a spot in the forward line after a career spent filling gaps in defence or on the wing.
A brilliant left-foot snap helped Brisbane to a comeback win over Sydney in July, Ah Chee riding the momentum as he booted 10 goals in the Lions' four finals games.
His four majors and 11 score involvements in Brisbane's 60-point grand final thrashing of the Swans was the icing on the cake for a former No.8 draft pick who had spent his first four seasons on the Gold Coast.
"I didn't have a huge amount of belief early in my career but certainly found that last year, and hopefully that can take my game to another level," Ah Chee said ahead of the Lions' intra-club fixture on Friday.
"Just playing in the forward line, it allowed me to play my own instinctive brand of footy.
"I can just play football and not think too much ... (play) the brand I got drafted for.
"I probably put too much expectation on myself, but as I've gotten older ... it's released the shackles a bit."
Ah Chee has traditionally had to work his way into the Lions' best side in his five seasons at the Gabba, but will now have a long list of contenders gunning to unseat him.
They include dynamic small forward Lincoln McCarthy, who on Wednesday trained fully for the first time since rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament early last season.
His absence allowed Ah Chee a permanent spot in the forward line and gave Kai Lohmann a chance he took with open arms.
Darcy Gardiner, Tom Doedee and Keidean Coleman suffered the same knee injury last year and were all on various restrictions on Wednesday.
McCarthy is eyeing a return in the Lions' final pre-season fixture against Adelaide at their Springfield base on February 27.
"Super exciting for Linc,'' Ah Chee said.
"It's been a long year for him and few of the boys who did their knees, but it's exciting to see them all coming back, and Linc's such a big player for us.
"He's such a great leader down there, and I'm looking forward to when he comes back to see what he can do as well. He's an important player for us.
"You just know that you can trust him. He's always going to be in the right place at the right time."
