The injury-plagued 28-year-old, who has only managed 130 games since he was drafted in 2006, joined the Saints as a free agent last year and he insisted it was the right time for a change.

"It's good, a lot of people were surprised with the move but [I'm] 28 so I think for me it was the right time," Brown told RSN radio on Friday.

"Being somewhere for 11 years and you get used to something, you get into a habit and the way of playing footy and all that kind of stuff so the change so far, when I got across the first couple of weeks I was like a young player again.

"It's given me the kick up the bum that I needed at this time of my career to go again and elevate again and get something more out of my career in terms of football.

"So far I've been at the Saints for three months and I've absolutely enjoyed it, training's great, loving the environment down there so hopefully that translates into my performance and I can contribute to the team in the season."

However, Brown admitted he was a bit surprised that Collingwood failed to match St Kilda's bid for the restricted free agent, especially given the Pies' dearth of key defenders.

"I had some pretty honest chats with the [Collingwood] guys over the September and early October period and I knew where they were at and we made it pretty clear," he said.

"And yes things did happen and yes it is surprising on the outside [given] that they do need a [key] position player that I happen to be but that's the way it turned out.

"I found St Kilda and I absolutely don't regret the decision at all and the club has been very welcoming to me so I'm very happy with how things panned out."

Arriving at a club with so many talented youngsters has invigorated Brown and he has been impressed with what he deems to be a "great spread of leadership" throughout the playing group.

"With a couple of new acquisitions over the trade period as well and drafting and stuff, the list runs deep," Brown said.

The former No.10 pick revealed he has benefited from matching up against forwards Paddy McCartin and Josh Bruce over the pre-season.

"They've been fantastic for me and we do a lot of work together and particularly the fitness side and the wrestling and all the game-style fitness stuff as well so we're pushing each other," he said.

"And for me as a 28-year-old working with these younger guys that are full of energy and full of enthusiasm and everything, it's great for me but it's also good for each other as a whole that we can work hard against each other and push each other forward.

"I've really enjoyed that side of it and these guys are fantastic. It is a young forward line but it's very exciting and it's absolutely great for the club."

After having his 2016 marred by three concussions and a broken collarbone, McCartin hasn't missed a beat at training so far this pre-season, according to Brown.