Jack Henry is finally feeling sure-footed again.
The Geelong defender is over the foot injuries that destroyed his 2023 campaign and back taking on the AFL's best forwards.
And Brisbane star Joe Daniher looms as the next big gun in his sights.
Henry had a stress fracture early in 2022, then had surgery at the start of 2023, before his year was ended early by a Lisfranc injury - suffered in a relatively innocuous incident - in that same troublesome right foot.
"I just had to rebuild, learn how to walk again," Henry told AAP.
"It's a bit exaggerated, but it's a lot of stair-walking and just strengthening all the muscles throughout the feet and all the ligaments as well.
"It's just a long, slow process, but I got to do that over the break, in the last off-season, and then in our preseason as well.
"I didn't do any ballet - that was probably by my choice - but a lot of ballet-style exercises."
Feet can be notoriously difficult to get right.
But Henry never felt like he wouldn't return to his best.
"I was pretty confident," he said.
"Like the left side of the foot, that was bit unlucky with a few of those, but I knew that had been properly fixed.
"Then I was just unlucky, got trod on awkwardly on the right side last year.
"Tommy Stewart, he'd been through the same injury, we saw how he came back from that - he had a couple of All-Australians post all that.
"So you can see you can get back to your best after those sort of things."
Henry's better run of luck has allowed him to play 24 games this year - and more footy with younger brother Ollie - even if they're usually at opposite ends of the field.
"It's really exciting, especially when he's up and firing and doing well," he said.
"It's great just to be able to watch and give a little fist pump behind the ball when he's kicking goals."
Henry, Mark Blicavs and Jake Kolodjashnij will have to handle a dynamic Brisbane attack in the preliminary final at the MCG on Saturday evening.
That includes semi-final hero Daniher, who got the better of star GWS defender Sam Taylor late to prove the Lions' matchwinner.
"We usually try and do a pretty collaborative effort with our keys down there," Henry said.
"They've got a lot of dangerous players.
"Between probably Kola, Blitz and I, it will be a pretty tough task, but it'll be exciting."
Geelong face a selection squeeze in defence, with Sam De Koning pressing his case and defender/midfielder Stewart set to return.
"We're always pretty confident with who we have back there," Henry said.
"We've got a lot of faith in each other to get the job done."
