But since going back-to-back in 2015/16, the Lions has fallen short in the past couple of finals campaigns.

"I might be a hard marker, as I always like to win, but realistically, from where we were aT the start of last season, I was pretty happy how we finished up," Cronin said.

"We were lucky to unearth a couple of new players, such as Toby Gumley-Quine, Jack Collier, Jordan Chandler and Jake Taylor, but at the end of the day, we just weren't good enough - as there's only one side that can ever win a competition."

With the start of the 2019 season fast approaching, it appears Cronin will again have some new faces in his squad this year.

"At this stage, there's no Joel Roberts, Michael Brown, Brad Davidson and Kal Collins - with the latter being ruled out for the year with a neck injury," he said.

"As such, we will be starting the season with a number of young blokes in the forwards, like Alex Weir and Dylan Arnold.

"Despite this change in personnel, I'd still like to think we will be competitive."

Being competitive shouldn't be a problem for the Michael Cronin Oval based side, with the likes of Nathan Ford, Rixon Russell, Isaac Russell and Matt Winchester still at the club, not to mention, the return of former Lion David Catterall.

"Players like Nathan [Ford] and Rixon [Russell] have been here for nearly 10 years, so as two of the older blokes in the teams, they'll again be asked to lead from the front on the field," Cronin said.

"With that being said, in this competition, you never know how well you're actually going until the first few rounds of the season.

"And without seeing who all the other teams roll out in round one, I'd be very disappointed if we're not competitive and pushing for finals again."