Sydney Swans key defender Lewis Melican is looking to return to the consistent football that he knows he is capable of in 2022.

Making his debut in 2017, the 25-year-old has faced injury setbacks over the last few years that has seen him take the field for just 15 games in the past two seasons.

With 52 games under his belt, the defender has his eyes set on the form that once saw him win the club’s Rising Star award.

Melican has a goal of cementing his spot in the side’s back six alongside some experienced teammates and talented youngsters coming through the ranks.

“My goal for the year is to really cement my spot in the back six,” Melican said.

“I have had a few injuries over the past few years and I would just like to be able to play some consistent footy and play the footy I know I can play.

“We have a young group coming through but we also have some really experienced played in our back six in Dane Rampe, Jake Llloyd and Harry Cunningham.”

Learning from that trio has helped Melican continue to develop and work on his craft over the years.

With strong performances from his six games during the 2021 season, Melican had produced a career high 17 disposals and 5 intercept marks during the Elimination Final against the Giants.

He knows he is among a group of young talent coming through that are pushing each other to improve.

“You are able to learn so much from those three (Rampe, Cunningham and Lloyd), they see the game really well and can talk you through it,” Melican said.

“Rampe shows you week in and week out what to do and leads by example whereas Harry and Llloydy talk you through it and help you where you need. 

“It’s great to have that experience but also some young exciting talent coming up through the ranks.

“As much as the leaders are there, there are the boys coming up from underneath pushing them and challenging them which helps the whole team.”

And with pre-season fixtures quickly approach, Melican is hoping to continue to build from the strong base he has developed this pre-season.

“I was just looking to get a full preseason in and build my fitness over the break. I feel I have built a pretty base since then so it’s now just about keeping on top of that and building from that base as we move into the full team work,” Melican said.

“We are not far off match play so its all about building that match fitness as opposed to the running that we have done over the past few months.

“We are really ramping up the game work and getting the contest work back in.

And the excitement of playing in front of our members and fans is one that Melican said he will thrive off.

“Our members and fans are a massive part of the game so to have them there, the atmosphere that they build and the support that they give is a massive part of the game,” he said.

“It will be great to have that back and to really thrive off that energy that they provide.”

The Sydney Swans will face North Melbourne and the GWS Giants in the pre-season before kicking off their 2022 campaign with plenty of highlights members and fans can look forward to.