Higgs Boson
7 Nov 2005, 07:37
Intesting story in The Age (http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/realfooty/articles/2005/11/05/1130823437648.html) over the weekend. I didn't know Trapper was injured for most of the 2005 season. I would love to see him have a full pre-season and play a whole year without injury. Let's hope this doesn't present any further problems and that Travis can have a big 2006.
Johnstone expected to be fit for next season
By Samantha Lane
November 5, 2005
TO LOOK at him you wouldn't have known Melbourne's Travis Johnstone had played the season under duress, but as he gets around in an arm brace that is as eye-catching as his football skills, the after-effects are plain to see.
Johnstone won the Demons' club champion award after the best year of his career. But he had his left elbow reconstructed after a tear in his medial ligament was discovered post-season — an ailment more commonly suffered by baseball pitchers than footballers.
The 25-year-old midfielder will not begin competitive skills work until after Christmas. Despite the brace, Johnstone was able to run with his teammates last week when they completed a time trial around Albert Park Lake.
"He hurt it early in the season, so he carried it for most of the year," Melbourne football operations manager Chris Fagan said.
"It was just painful, and I guess it was tough when he tackled and he had to strap it and those sorts of things. It wasn't bad enough to stop him, but it was something that needed to be addressed.
"He just had a bit of exploratory surgery on it at the end of the season, and it was decided that there was enough damage in there to do a bit of a reconstruction."
Fagan said it was unclear what had caused the injury, but his arm had probably been caught awkwardly during a match. Johnstone played 22 of a possible 23 games this year.
He was operated on after the best-and-fairest count in September, and could not travel with his teammates to Thailand's Phi Phi Island, where Troy Broadbridge was killed in the Boxing Day tsunami.
Johnstone will wear the brace for another week before using it part-time for up to a month.
"He's got it in a brace at the moment that half looks bionic," Fagan said.
"It's a bit of a combination of wetsuit material and some sort of steel, aluminium framing that allows him to bend his elbow but keeps things in place.
"It stops the arm from swinging in certain directions. It keeps it pretty much to up and down sort of movements rather than anything sideways."
The Demons don't anticipate that the setback will prevent Johnstone from playing pre-season games.
"We're expecting him to be back in full training straight after Christmas because it's a three-month time of recuperation from the time of operation," Fagan said.
"He'll just run and then gradually he'll progress, as it improves, to some light skill work. Obviously, competitive work will be out of the question until after Christmas."
http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/ffximage/2005/11/06/wbJOHNSTONE_narrowweb__300x405.jpg
Johnstone expected to be fit for next season
By Samantha Lane
November 5, 2005
TO LOOK at him you wouldn't have known Melbourne's Travis Johnstone had played the season under duress, but as he gets around in an arm brace that is as eye-catching as his football skills, the after-effects are plain to see.
Johnstone won the Demons' club champion award after the best year of his career. But he had his left elbow reconstructed after a tear in his medial ligament was discovered post-season — an ailment more commonly suffered by baseball pitchers than footballers.
The 25-year-old midfielder will not begin competitive skills work until after Christmas. Despite the brace, Johnstone was able to run with his teammates last week when they completed a time trial around Albert Park Lake.
"He hurt it early in the season, so he carried it for most of the year," Melbourne football operations manager Chris Fagan said.
"It was just painful, and I guess it was tough when he tackled and he had to strap it and those sorts of things. It wasn't bad enough to stop him, but it was something that needed to be addressed.
"He just had a bit of exploratory surgery on it at the end of the season, and it was decided that there was enough damage in there to do a bit of a reconstruction."
Fagan said it was unclear what had caused the injury, but his arm had probably been caught awkwardly during a match. Johnstone played 22 of a possible 23 games this year.
He was operated on after the best-and-fairest count in September, and could not travel with his teammates to Thailand's Phi Phi Island, where Troy Broadbridge was killed in the Boxing Day tsunami.
Johnstone will wear the brace for another week before using it part-time for up to a month.
"He's got it in a brace at the moment that half looks bionic," Fagan said.
"It's a bit of a combination of wetsuit material and some sort of steel, aluminium framing that allows him to bend his elbow but keeps things in place.
"It stops the arm from swinging in certain directions. It keeps it pretty much to up and down sort of movements rather than anything sideways."
The Demons don't anticipate that the setback will prevent Johnstone from playing pre-season games.
"We're expecting him to be back in full training straight after Christmas because it's a three-month time of recuperation from the time of operation," Fagan said.
"He'll just run and then gradually he'll progress, as it improves, to some light skill work. Obviously, competitive work will be out of the question until after Christmas."
http://www.realfooty.theage.com.au/ffximage/2005/11/06/wbJOHNSTONE_narrowweb__300x405.jpg