Western Bulldogs defender Lewis Young says it feels great to be back in the AFL side after more than 12 months between senior matches.

Young was a late inclusion for the Bulldogs’ round four win over Brisbane as a replacement for injured key defender Ryan Gardner, playing for the first time since round one of last year.

“It’s good to be back – it’s been a long time coming, and I have done a lot of work behind the scenes to get back to where I am,” Young said post-match.

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Lewis Young | 'It's been a long time coming'

Hear from Lewis Young after his return to AFL footy in the round 4 win against Brisbane.

“Being back in defence I feel really comfortable, working with Alex Keath, Easton (Wood) and the other guys, so it’s really good to be back there.”

The 22-year-old was a solid contributor on the day, registering 17 disposals, five marks and 13 intercepts while manning up on Lions’ talls Joe Daniher and Eric Hipwood.

Young said it was pleasing for the backline to be able to gel the way they did.

“It was a scrappy sort of game with the conditions, so it was just really good to play the way (we did) – we just backed in our systems and it went really well,” he said.

“We’re really happy (with the 4-0 start) – we’re just keeping it week to week, and trying to get better each week and we’re doing that so far.”