This article originally appeared on afl.com.au
IT WAS round five last year when Miles Bergman knew something just wasn't right.
After recovering from two shoulder surgeries over the pre-season, the Port Adelaide youngster had worked his way back into the Power line-up in the first month of the year, but it was to be a short-lived stint.
The club's clash with Carlton at the MCG in April was the fifth of the Power's five straight losses to start the season. It was also the last time Bergman, one of their most promising prospects, would be seen at senior level until round 16.
"Throughout the week, I was starting to feel a bit nauseous and fatigued and most days was waking up feeling really average," the 21-year-old told AFL.com.au.
"But I trained through it and played against Carlton with a bit of it and it really affected me.
"I could feel it throughout the game, I was very heavy and had nothing in me. And then I trained throughout the week and got to our captain's run on Friday as we were about to play West Coast and I just went, 'Nah, there's something wrong here'."
Bergman had been doing COVID tests daily and returning negative results and after a few sleepless nights ended up in hospital for a night. With time, he was able to recover from the bout of ill-health, and he's also got on top of how to respond when he is feeling run down and to monitor himself for signs.
"I was going to have a cold shower in the middle of the night and going back to bed, and 20 minutes later I'd be freezing cold so I'd put four layers on," he said. "And then another hour after that I'd be boiling hot again.
"I finally got back into the club three or four weeks later, which took me about two weeks to build back up before I could play. Then I had probably about a month of SANFL trying to get my fitness back so I could run out a game before I finally got back into the senior team."
All of which illustrates why Bergman feels much better about how 2023 is shaping up for him – with Port also having high hopes for the athletic wingman, who was the No.14 pick at the 2019 draft.
This time around he hasn't had a pre-season ruined by back-to-back shoulder operations – the second was required after the first didn't go as hoped – and he has a better guide as to how he can maintain his health.
He has continued to put on size since joining the Power and his athletic traits – he can run, jump and mark as well as play a number of positions on the ground – saw him be a regular in Ken Hinkley's side that reached the preliminary final in 2021.
That season Bergman debuted in round one and played 23 games, before playing 10 last season between the disruptions. The former Sandringham Dragon, who is out of contract this year, has trained up as a wingman this summer and feels ready to take his game up a notch.
"Being able to train with the main group really helps that confidence as well. I'm feeling more comfortable and more of a leader as I'm getting a bit older," he said.
"I will be hoping to get the best out of myself this year and hopefully as a team we can make finals. Individually I'm just hoping to stay fit and healthy and play a full year of solid footy and really prove myself."
Shifting from Victoria to South Australia had been challenging for Bergman, who moved just months before COVID shut state borders, but he has now adjusted to Adelaide life.
Last year, when his name was floated as a potential trade option as part of the Power's busy off-season, he told the club he was adamant on staying. Port, also, had no plans of moving him on.
"I talked to the club as soon as the season ended," he said.
"(I) said, 'I really want to stay and want to get a really good season in. I had a really interrupted year this year and (I want to) try to enjoy my footy as much as I can'."
