Assistant Coach Adrian Fletcher has revealed that the Lions Match Committee weren’t prepared to risk selecting ruckman Matthew Leuenberger for Saturday’s all-important season-opener against the Western Bulldogs.

Leuenberger, who has played just two ‘half-games’ this pre-season since recovering from a persistent Achilles strain, was considered too underdone for such a high stakes match.

“Obviously (Leuenberger) would have been a high risk proposition for Round One,” Fletcher told lions.com.au.

“You need to have 22 fit players and rely on everyone to perform for the full 120 minutes. Leuey just didn’t have the miles in his legs.”

“It’s also a credit to young Billy Longer who has really stepped up during the pre-season.”

The Lions’ relatively healthy list meant the Match Committee were forced to make some tough decisions on players who had performed well during the NAB Cup.

Sam Docherty and Andrew Raines were the two members of the team’s NAB Cup premiership side who missed out on selection in Round One.

But Fletcher expects the fierce competition for senior spots to intensify throughout the season.    

“We believe that there are 32 players who could legitimately push for selection week in and week out – and that’s not including our young developing players,” Fletcher said.

“That’s a great position for the Club to be in – it makes for a healthy and successful football environment.”

“The players who have been selected know that if they don’t do the ground work leading into games, and subsequently have a hiccup on match day, then there will be a number of players waiting in the wings for their spot.”

“That’s how we will get better.”