Lions forward Patrick Karnezis will be sporting a new look, in more ways than one, when he takes to the field for the first time in 2012.

Fans who haven’t had the opportunity to watch Karnezis and his team-mates train this pre-season, shouldn’t expect to see the same thinly-framed and big-haired teenager from the second half of last season.

A short haircut and an off-season spent in the gym, has made the 19 year-old almost unrecognisable on the track.

Speaking exclusively with LIONS TV, Karnezis spoke of the improvements he has seen in his game since arriving at the Club towards the end of 2010.

“I definitely feel a lot physically different compared to when I came to the Club last year,” Karnezis said.

“I’ve put on around 10kg all up, so my weight has definitely changed.”

Karnezis said that he was already noticing the benefits of having a bigger frame during the competitive drills at training.

“I’ve been working on my contested one-on-one stuff, and trying to match-up on key defenders like Daniel Merrett and Joel Patfull which has really helped out,” he said.

“My running capability has also improved, but is something I still need to work on.”