South Colac’s Jordan Murrihy will return to the field after a two-year battle with a knee injury.
SOUTH Colac’s Jordan Murrihy will be eager to hear the final siren when he makes his long-awaited return to the field against Simpson tomorrow.
The 24-year-old midfielder has failed to make it through a match with the Roos after damaging his anterior cruciate ligament in round one, 2010, having crossed from the Colac Tigers.
But Murrihy has declared he is fit to return after a full knee reconstruction, an arthroscopy and about two years of recovery and rehabilitation.
“I’m pretty confident in my body but I don’t really have any expectations of myself, I’m just happy to get out there and help the boys,” he said.
“The knee’s been feeling good for the past month, a lot of people have been telling me not to rush back but if it’s not right now it never will be.”
Murrihy’s recovery has not been smooth sailing since his initial injury.
He reinjured the knee later that season after making a premature return, which required him to have a knee reconstruction in March last year, ruling him out for the entire 2011 season.
Murrihy spent about a month in rehabilitation after his arthroscopy in January and has since stuck to a program his physiotherapist set.
“It’s been a bit of a week-by-week thing, building up the strength and then running,” he said.
“It’s feeling strong and running there are no worries, it’s pain free. I wouldn’t be playing if it wasn’t.”
South Colac coach Stephen Hammond said injuries to the Roos had paved the way for Murrihy’s return, otherwise he might have come into the side through the reserves.
But Murrihy’s form on the training track and playing record that included three years of senior football with the Colac Tigers in the Geelong Football League showed he was good enough for senior selection.
“If we had a full side we might not have looked at him coming straight in, but we’ve had a couple of injuries so he’ll play Saturday,” Hammond said.
“He’s been doing fitness tests the past four weeks at training, he was doing contested work Tuesday week,” he said.
“He wanted to play round one and two, so he’s definitely ready round three.”
