'They've set the bar': Saints urged to be like Brisbane

After club president Andrew Bassat again used his speech at the Saints best-and-fairest awards on Monday night to rail against draft concessions available to clubs such as Brisbane, later in the evening Lyon lauded the premiers.

"We've all been in a fight (over recruiting concessions), but I went to that grand final ... they are a tough team," Lyon said.

"They are fully committed. Grand final day, they were tough and were skilful and they were a total team.

"So we're not at that level, as coaches or players. Things aren't just going to happen - (but) you can make things happen in league footy."

Lyon said Brisbane's success was due to much more than draft measures such as father-son recruits or club academies.

"Whatever advantages they have, you can ignore that because that doesn't talk to their toughness, their resilience and commitment to each other," Lyon said.

"We've been strong, we've had great spirit, but we have room to move in all of those things.

"They've set the bar and that's what it looks like. If you were one of the players who weren't there, grab the tape and have a really good look at it.

"That's where you want to be and that's the standard we're all chasing."

The Saints are bullish ahead of next season as they try to return to the finals for the first time since 2020, with Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera headlining a number of young guns who have re-signed.

They are also on a recruiting spree - Carlton pair Tom De Koning and Jack Silvagni and GWS player Leek Aleer are all set to join.

Wanganeen-Milera won the Trevor Barker Award as Saints best-and-fairest for the first time on Monday night, capping his breakout season which also featured a lucrative two-year contract extension.

"I'm keen for the future and I'm keen to make some change for the footy club," he said.

"I'm looking forward to the next few years at St Kilda and keen to make some change, get some success."