Melbourne's push to escape last place on the AFL ladder has suffered a blow with ankle surgery to end the season for midfielder Brock McLean.

One of the Demons' most consistent players this year had tests on Monday and they showed the injury in his left ankle was worse than first thought.

McLean was forced from the field in the opening quarter of Sunday's match against Brisbane at the MCG but returned after half-time as the Demons scored an outstanding one-point upset win.

"There's a fair bit of damage to a ligament at the front of the ankle, that holds the tibia and fibula together - I'm no doctor, but that's what I could understand," McLean said.

"It'd be (the) season, I should be right to go pre-season.

"But from what the specialist was saying, for the first two I've got to put the foot up and not move at all."

A philosophical McLean was on crutches on Tuesday and said two screws would go into the bone to help the ligament heal.

What frustrates him the most is the Demons are showing strong signs of improvement, but he will not be part of the on-field development for the rest of the season.

Sunday's win capped off a month of better form and club legend Jim Stynes is also now their president.

"With Jim Stynes coming on board (as president), a lot of young players coming through, I suppose it's a little bit more frustrating," McLean said.

"It was amazing, Brisbane have been a bogey side of our's for a long time, since I've been at the club we haven't played them at the `G.

"To be 11 points down with three or four minutes to go, a lot of people would have written us off then and to be able to kick two goals ... and hang on, was pretty amazing."

McLean suffered a broken right foot last year, but this is the first time he has suffered a season-ending injury.

He was unsure whether his return to the field had aggravated the injury.

"We're not too sure, I don't think so, but you can never really tell," he said.

Over the summer, McLean was involved in several off-field controversies - bar-room incidents during a European holiday, banned from the carpark at a training facility because of a "burnout" and being caught for speeding.

After being touted as a potential successor for then-captain David Neitz, McLean was kicked off the leadership group and he now sees that as a good thing for him.

"Off-field, last year and the start of this year weren't probably some of my greatest moments, but it's probably something that needed to happen," he said.

McLean declined an offer during the season to return to an official leadership role, saying he realised it was adversely affecting him.

But the onballer will reconsider if asked again during the off-season.

"That was probably one of my weaknesses, I probably looked ahead a little bit too much in terms of leadership," he said.

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