ALEX Woodward is confident he’s on the right track.
For the 22-year-old, it’s all about small steps, as he commences the long journey back from his third knee reconstruction.
It’s been exactly a month since Woodward injured the ACL in his right knee, playing for Box Hill Hawks in the VFL.
His recovery has started slowly – but as someone who has been through this situation twice before, he believes it’s been a positive start.
“I’m still fairly upbeat and in a good mindset,” Woodward told hawthornfc.com.au.
“I saw the surgeon last week and everything is really good there. I’m walking without crutches, which is a big step for me, and I had my first swim yesterday which was good.
“I feel this one’s a lot different to the last couple of reconstructions – the procedure was a bit different to the first two.
“I feel like if I could overcome the first two, I can overcome this one, I’ve just got to be patient and take my time.”
Woodward, who was having another stellar season at VFL level and on the verge of senior selection before his injury, said taking his mind of football since the injury had been a focus for him.
“I’ve barely been at the club,” he said.
“I’ve had a lot of family time and a lot of uni work, and I’m just trying to keep my mind occupied, otherwise I’ll be focusing too much on the fact that I’m not going to be playing footy for a while.
“I’ve been to one Box Hill game for a half, but I haven’t really had too much to do with footy since injuring myself.
“I still text a few of the younger boys to see how they’re going – I’m trying to keep in the loop a little bit, but not too much.”
The midfielder is slowly starting to return to the club, but said the support of his teammates – and particularly former Hawk Max Bailey, who also battled numerous knee injuries during his career – over the past month had been overwhelming.
“The boys have been great. It’s not the best news having to go through this again, but the boys have been really supportive – especially Max,” he said.
“I’ve caught up with Max probably six times now post-surgery and he’s been gold for me.”
It’s still very much “early days” – but Woodward is starting to look forward, if only a little bit.
“Now that I’m walking I can start doing a few more things, starting with the pool, and once I can get a bit more range I can start using the bike,” he said.
“(But) it’s still early days, so I don’t want to look too far ahead.
“The short term goals are what I’m looking at.”
Woodward, who made his AFL debut last season, said messages of support he has received since injuring his knee have helped him remain positive.
“Naturally I come across as a fairly upbeat, positive person, so if I can spread that across social media, it’s a bit of reassurance to not only myself, but to the supporters and my family as well that I’m okay and that I can definitely bounce back from here,” he said.
He’s confident this injury is just another obstacle to overcome on his journey to play football at the highest level.
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