PORT ADELAIDE defender Matthew Broadbent says he can’t wait to make his return from a long-term ankle injury and is especially excited to do it in the SANFL for the Magpies this weekend.
Broadbent initially injured himself at training 12 months ago but played on for much of last season before undergoing two ankle operations.
“It was a bit of an unlucky one at training,” he said.
“I jumped up to smother the footy and took the ball in the head and on the way down I landed on the ankle a bit funny.
“That was the initial incident but I ended up playing most of the second half of the year – not very well I might add – then had surgery at the end of the season, just a bit of a clean out.
“I managed to get back running for a few weeks just before Christmas but went downhill again.”
The 27-year-old had been a mainstay in the Power
But Broadbent admits he had doubts about his future after his first operation.
“It was a tough time because I was just waiting to see if I needed surgery again and then I had to have a second surgery in January and since then I’ve been rehabbing,” he said.
“There was a lot of strengthening up around the calf and foot initially and then we built up into running and getting faster and faster.
“More recently we added in kicking and agility and those sorts of things and I have been training fully for the last couple of weeks.”
Broadbent received a rousing reception from his teammates when he returned to full training at Adelaide Oval last week.
He is now setting himself to push for a return to the AFL side towards the end of the season after building some form and fitness in the SANFL.
He will play his first game since July 29,
“I’ve been training with the whole squad for the last couple of weeks and I feel like I’m a first-year player, with plenty of energy,” he said.
“I grew up a bit of a
“I can’t wait to pull them on against Norwood.”
More on portadelaidefc.com.au...
