A big win and the re-signing of young gun Josh Schache have gone a long way to the Brisbane Lions shedding an "irrelevant" tag, says Dayne Zorko.
With the past week reaping a 57-point win over Fremantle and the prized signature of former No.2 pick Schache, things are looking up for the last-placed Lions.
Zorko told RSN after years of failing to get the attention of the football world, there was a feeling in Brisbane that things were slowly changing for the better.
"We as a club probably felt a little bit irrelevant in the competition over the past few years," Zorko said.
"We probably have fallen off the face of the earth and been the easy beats of the competition.
"I know that's something we've addressed over the pre-season on how can we make ourselves more relevant in the competition again, and I feel we're slowly building that back up.
"We certainly want to change that view, the steps are in place now and we're growing and getting stronger each week."
Recent history has seen the Lions lose many quality players to the 'go-home factor', with Elliot Yeo, Sam Docherty and Jared Polec all becoming important cogs at other clubs.
But Zorko believes Victorian Schache's signature is a massive fillip to the Lions retaining talent and the culture they are building.
"We're so excited that he's recommitted to the club. I kind of felt he always wanted to stay and it was just getting it done," he said.
"For a No.2 pick to want to stay and be a part of our future, it just gives the club great confidence and we are doing things right."
Tom Rockliff looms as another key re-signing for the Lions, with the midfielder in strong form after receiving criticism over his attitude last year.
Zorko expects his midfield partner-in-crime to be a Lion for years to come.
"I just thought there was a lot of unfair criticism towards Tom, and then to come back this pre-season and to perform the way he has is outstanding," Zorko said.
'I just couldn't be more proud of the way he has approached it.
"He understands we've got an extremely young list and he wants to be apart of us helping us grow."
