Young gun Pat Lipinski has enjoyed a prolific month since returning to AFL ranks.
The 20-year-old spent the first two months of the season at VFL level, but has tallied almost 27 disposals per game across the past four weeks.
That culminated in a career-best 32 touches against Collingwood last week.
A change of role and the backing of coach Luke Beveridge – plus plenty of hard work – has been the key to him being able to make an impact for the Western Bulldogs in 2019.
“All pre-season I was playing wing and then the first game of the JLT I was playing wing and didn’t have my best game and then got sent back to the VFL and I pretty much played inside mid for 10 weeks or so and just got to really improve on my craft,” Lipinski told foxsports.com.au this week.
“I wouldn’t have had a chance to do that at AFL level, so that really helped me come into the AFL side and have more versatility to play forward, wing or mid.
“Coming back in and being confident (has been the catalyst behind form turnaround). Playing VFL you get to really work on your weaknesses.
“At the time, playing VFL can be a bit frustrating but it has definitely helped me because otherwise I wouldn’t get the opportunity to go in and play inside midfield at AFL level.”
Lipinski averaged 25 disposals and 4.7 tackles across his six matches at the start of the VFL season.
He forced his way into the AFL set-up, and with senior midfielders Mitch Wallis and Tom Liberatore sidelined through injury, Lipinski’s presence has been noticeable.
“He’s really blossoming,” star Bulldog Marcus Bontempelli said this week on RSN Breakfast Club.
“He’s built his ability to play inside and it’s largely become around his ability to win inside footy, be strong, contest it and go from there.
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“The thing about Patty is he’s got elite endurance and speed, and his ground coverage is as good as I’ve seen at our footy club.
“We’ve definitely benefitted from his ability to improve in a short period of time.
“It’s a great result for him. He’s worked on his game extensively, and for him to have felt that and been able to feel comfortable at the level is really important.”
Lipinski has noticed his own improvement, going head-to-head each week with the competition’s best midfields.
“I think it has just proven I belong at the level,” he said.
“I’m getting more confident with each game that I can stand up against the big bodies and really use my strengths with my running. It is a good confidence builder, but I really need to keep it up.”
