AN AFL debut is meant to be a memorable occasion. For Brynn Teakle, his was more memorable than most.

Just over two weeks from hearing his name incorrectly called out as Brian Teakle with the eighth pick of the mid-season rookie draft, the ruckman found himself running onto Adelaide Oval in a Port Adelaide jumper. The energy of the crowd sticks with him four days on, even despite the strong pain killers he has been taking since Saturday’s win over Sydney.

After leaping high at the first bounce but giving away a free kick, the 22-year-old settled into the game, taking an impressive pack mark, recording an important smother and competing well against the more experienced Peter Ladhams in the ruck duels.

In the second quarter he inflicted a solid bump on Swan Justin McInerney but needed to be helped from the field, having broken his collarbone in the process.

It meant his debut lasted all of 35 minutes.

“The first thing Ken said to me when I got drafted was to be aggressive and I guess that hit, I had to do basically,” Teakle said of the bump.

“He said ‘be aggressive, have fun, and be you out there - bring the energy’. I think that’s what I did.”

While he left the game at half time and finished it in hospital, Teakle was still beaming about the experience on Wednesday, when he returned to the club for training with his arm in a sling.

“It was absolutely awesome,” Teakle said, smiling.

“Just the build up before the game; the jumper presentation, the music with the Never Tear Us Apart and all the fans - that was the best part.

“I thought I was going pretty well in the first quarter and a half that I was playing but I was just really excited to be there and it was an awesome day still.”

Teakle went under the knife on Sunday and was home soon after to catch up with some family, which had made the trip across from Western Australia to watch his first game in the big time.

He has now started the process of rehabilitating, hoping to return within the six-to-eight-week timeframe he has been set by medical staff.

“The surgery went really well,” he explained. “I obviously stayed in hospital overnight and got an early release the next day then went home and saw family while they were over here before they took the flight home.

“It’s feeling good with no pain at all.

“I’m back at the club but I’m not allowed to sweat too much (because of the surgical wound) so I’m just keeping it pretty light.

“I just did some cycling this morning and watched training with the boys and then a bit of gym work but hopefully I’ll be back running next week, (although) that might be pushing the boundaries a bit.

“But hopefully soon I’ll be back on the track.”

After a whirlwind and lifechanging three weeks, Teakle said he had paused to reflect, and was grateful for the support he had received, not just from within the club but from its supporters – some who had even jokingly offered him their collarbones.

And he is now hellbent on getting back on the park for another taste of the AFL.

“I got a lot of messages from a lot of the fans when I was in hospital,” he said.

“I couldn’t really sleep so I was up all night reading them all, which was really nice.

“The Port fans are amazing. At the game as well, when I was walking off, they were all cheering and clapping me so it was pretty special to get that response from the crowd already.

“I definitely want to try and push for another game but I’ll see how the recovery goes and how quickly the bone heals.”