Since becoming a Bulldog rookie last December, former Brisbane Lion Marty Pask has not looked back.

Fuelled by the notion of "everything happens for a reason", the 22-year-old utility believes his 2006 delisting from the Lions' rookie list has come as a blessing in disguise.

"The Bulldogs are a really great football club," Pask told westernbulldogs.com.au.

"It's a club that is built on a lot of pride and a lot of trust, and the ownership is on the group. So it's certainly been a great move and a great change.

"Everything down here has been really good. I've always enjoyed Melbourne when I've come down here to play, so it's a new city, a new club, a new challenge – and a great bunch of guys.

"The guys have been really good. They've helped me settle in really well and the coaching staff has been fantastic."

Pask spent almost two years on the Lions' rookie list before he was elevated midway through 2006 and given the chance to play eight senior games.

While quick to establish he holds no grudge against his former club, he said the standard of education and communication at the Bulldogs has provided him with surroundings he can thrive in.

"This environment suits me a lot better. It's wrong for me to say it's a better club or anything like that, because it's all about what you're accustomed to and what you're used to," he said.

"Certainly the change from Brisbane to here … I can feel like the Western Bulldogs are heading in the right direction where at Brisbane you didn't really feel like you knew what was going on from week to week, as a young person.

"The education thing here is fantastic. From the first day I got here, 'Rocket' pulled me aside and said this is what we do here, this is the education. It's sort of like going to school again and being told how to play football.

"The interaction, and basically hearing it from the coach, helps educate you a lot more and gives you a heads up on what is expected and what is required. As a young footballer, that is exactly what you need. It has been fantastic."

Pask still isn't sure why the Lions delisted him at the end of last season, although he believes Leigh Matthews considered him "not tall enough" to fill a key position in the side.

While the 22-year-old said he was now comfortable with the Lions' decision, he revealed he was initially taken aback when Matthews delivered the news the day after Mad Monday.

"To be honest, I was surprised. From all indications, I thought I was fine," he said.

"But when one door closes, another one opens. I've come down here and already I feel like things have been pretty good in my football development. Things are going along well.

"I'm very fortunate to be picked up again and very lucky to be at such a great club. It all worked out very well. But I was a little surprised. I went through all the emotions, but it became a question of now, what do I do?

"When Rodney called and said he'd like me to come down here, that meant a lot and gave me some hope that I could go around again and that my career wasn't over at 21."

An upturn in his football career isn’t the only way Pask's life has changed since that Tuesday in September. He has since gained a girlfriend (Australian swimmer Leisel Jones), has moved to a club that complements his personality, and is living in a city he already loves.

"It's been a blessing, in many respects. I wouldn't have met my partner if I had stayed at the Lions. Things like fate come into it and things happen for a reason.

"I don't want to sit here and criticise Leigh Matthews or the Lions, but I was hurt by the way I was delisted and I thought things could have been handled better."

Pask met Jones through a mutual friend shortly after his Lions contract had been terminated last year.

With Jones based in Queensland where she trains with coach Stephan Widmar, Pask said he is anticipating the day she arrives in Melbourne to begin preparation for March's World Championships.

"The move away from her for nine weeks was a little tough, but that's almost coming to an end now and we're two weeks away from her moving down here for the championships," he said.

"The 11 weeks where we weren't going to see each other was always going to be the test of our relationship, but that seems to have worked beautifully. Her support has been fantastic and I support her as much as I can.

"I'm going into a season and I haven't had that sort of support network before. But now I have someone who appreciates being an athlete. It's exciting."

Pask says the fact he's about to start his third season as an AFL rookie makes him more determined.

"This year, I feel so much further developed than how I was at the start of last year as a rookie-listed player. You look at the depth and talent of this list and you can only see positives.

"It's an opportunity. You look at so many footballers who nominate (for the draft) and the number of good players in the local competitions who would love to be rookies. That's the way I look at it.

"I know I'm in my third season as a rookie, but it's still my third season in the AFL. You don't know what will happen this year, there's 22 weeks in the season, and you look at some of the great players that come off the rookie list – there's been Brownlow medallists who start their careers as rookies.

"You're not treated as a rookie, you don't miss out on things, and you get the same amount of training. It's an opportunity and it just means you've got to work a little bit harder."