INJURY-RIDDLED Brisbane Lion Xavier Clarke is walking again - and will be in the gym soon - just days after having LARS surgery on his ruptured anterior cruciate ligament.

The former Saint had the revolutionary surgery on his ruptured ACL last week in a last-ditch bid to save his career, hoping the quick recovery time could have him back playing as soon as round five.

LARS surgery involves an artificial ligament being placed next to the damaged portion and secured with titanium screws, and recovery time is around four months (traditional knee reconstructions can take up to 16 months).

Clarke ruptured the ligament in his right knee, almost two years after suffering an identical injury to his left knee while playing for St Kilda’s VFL team Sandringham.

"It’s unbelievable, really, " Clarke told NT News.

"Compared to the surgery and long rehab on my left knee (ACL ligament) two years ago, it's chalk and cheese. I was able to walk out of hospital in a knee brace two days after my operation and the swelling has gone down.

"I'm back in the gym five days post op and in three or four weeks, hopefully, I can start running again."

Clarke injured the knee when he was caught under a teammate at training and entered hospital unsure if he was eligible for the LARS surgery.

"You have to tear the ligament a certain way before they'd even consider it, but after the surgeon had a look at the damage he went ahead with it. Obviously, if it was going to be a 16-month recovery it was going to be pretty hard from me to get back," he said.

"So when I woke up I was pretty happy because I knew I had a chance to get my career going again and starting over at Brisbane."

It has been a tumultuous summer for the Lions, who have had to deal with arrests and indefinite club suspensions of Brendan Fevola and Albert Proud.

The Lions and Clarke have also had to contend with the Queensland floods. The 27-year-old was lucky to save his belongings after teammates rallied to move his posessions to higher ground as floodwaters threatened.