YOU MIGHT think that clubs that fail make the finals put their feet up during the early stages of the off-season. You'd be wrong.

The fitness, medical and recruiting staff, as well the various coaches, all have plenty of work to do. In fact, with all the planning and reviews, September and October are among the busiest months for those at clubs that finish down the ladder.

A part of a club's work in September is ensuring that players come back from the off-season in reasonable shape. According to Brett Burton, the former Adelaide player who is now the physical performance manager at the Brisbane Lions, players are expected to come back at 80 to 90 per cent of their regular fitness.

Western Bulldogs midfielder Andrew Hooper made the news after the 2010 off-season because he returned to training a little tubby. It was news because it happens so rarely these days.

"They're full-time athletes now," Burton said. "Gone are the days when you would go away and see how much you could eat."

Most clubs follow the same procedure after their season has finished. The immediate task is to conduct what they call exit interviews.

Players are medically screened and, if need be, advised on recovery from operations. They're advised on aspects of fitness and diet to observe during the break. In some cases, players are asked for feedback on the programs conducted by fitness and medical staff during the season.

After the review period, the players are free to take their annual leave. Under the players' collective bargaining agreement, first- to third-year players get eight weeks' break. Fourth- to seventh-year players get nine weeks and players who've served eight years or more get a break of 10 weeks.

In the words of Cameron Falloon, Port Adelaide's head fitness coach, when asked about the exit interviews: "We just make sure they're ticking along at the required rate."

The next period is when the various areas of the football department come together to pool their reviews into one big vat. The departments within the football department include strength and conditioning, medical and list management, as well as the assistant coaches.

The following season's policies are drawn up after consideration of reviews. Decisions are made with a view to predicting trends in game plans and injury management.

Port Adelaide, for example, is looking at why its performances in contested ball situations were down in 2011 when compared to the previous two seasons. Many players are likely to be given programs that focus on strength.

The final task is to plan the pre-season. Many football department members then take a break of a couple of weeks. Falloon, however, will go on a research trip to Queensland and NSW.

He'll look at the practices of rugby league, rugby union and soccer clubs as well as the track and field program at the Australian Institute of Sport. His break will come at the end of October.

Peter Mulkearns, director of sports science and conditioning at North Melbourne, is preparing for his club's three-week training stint in the mountains of Utah in late October. Planning includes lining up consultants such as American-based masseurs.

"You want your players to be exposed to an elite program without any disruptions," he said.

Mulkearns, a veteran of a dozen years as an AFL fitness advisor, with Carlton and St Kilda also on his CV, noted the trend towards tailoring programs for every player. "The planning has become very individualised," he said.

The remaining question is about the teams that make the finals.

Yes, they do start the review and planning process later than clubs that fail to make the finals. But because most clubs in the finals have mature lists, there is less work required to get them up back to acceptable fitness.

Mature players know their bodies better than young players. They can review and plan for the next season with more knowledge of their capabilities.

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of the AFL or the clubs