With Jonathan Brown likely to miss the next couple of months with multiple facial fractures, Clark has become the Lions' focal point in attack.
And while he was quiet in the first two rounds, he showed he will not shy away from that responsibility with his performance against the Demons, racking up 28 possessions, 11 marks, one goal and three score assists.
After the match, Lions coach Michael Voss said Clark relished the opportunity to step up in Brown's absence. Voss said Clark had worked hard in the first two rounds but against Melbourne had found a better balance between working up the ground and playing deep.
Clark, himself, said in the Lions’ rooms after the game he had been pleased with his effort but would like to have kicked more goals.
"I haven't been too happy with my form in the first couple of weeks," Clark said.
"I was just trying to work up the ground and provide a target for the boys coming out of defence and through the midfield.
"I didn't get too many opportunities deep to kick goals but my work rate was a lot better this week compared to the previous two weeks."
Clark was also heartened by the performance of fellow tall Matthew Leuenberger, especially the mobile ruckman's growing ability to push forward and kick goals.
With the new substitute rule meaning ruckman have to spend more time on the ground, if he and Leuenberger can play dual ruck and forward roles it will give the Lions a lot of flexibility, Clark said.
"He's a big barometer for us. He gets us going in the middle and if he can push forward and kick goals he becomes more valuable for us," Clark said of Leuenberger, who kicked 1.1 against the Demons.
While Clark hopes he and Leuenberger can share the forward line load Brown will leave when he eventually retires, Clark said he was confident the Lions' next batch of midfielders were showing they could eventually fill the shoes of Simon Black and Luke Power.
"We can't rely on Black and Power each week. It's up to us next tier guys to step up and provide the team with a bit of a lift, so it's good to see guys like Tom Rockliff, Daniel Rich and Jack Redden doing well," he said.
"Those are the guys that are going to take us to the next level."
