Contested ball, which has been a key focus for the Lions the past few seasons, was the difference in their Round 12 loss to Carlton. Ruck and Midfield Coach Ben Hudson said the team will learn from the experience last Saturday.

“To Carlton’s credit they bounced back and got the momentum back on their side,” he said.

“We got beaten in contested ball and that probably started at stoppage in the third quarter and from there struggled to get the game back on our terms.

“We learn from it.”

The Lions will now enjoy a week off, with Hudson and fellow coaching staff pleased with their performances to date this season.

“The players have put in a tremendous effort thus far, including JLT and pre-season so if you ask the players they finished up until the bye really well,” he said.

“They’ll go away, have a rest, finish up tomorrow with a session and come back revitalized to take on St Kilda.”

The bye is a good opportunity for the team to reflect on their improvement over the past 12 months. This time last year the Lions had one win to their name. In 2019, they have 7.

“I think everyone here realizes that… but it’s more about what we’ve learnt and the situation we’ve put ourselves in,” Hudson said.

“We’re in a pretty good position, but the thing is the competition’s that even now, so we’ll go away and review some of things we need to improve on in the second half of the season.”