Past Tom Rockliff (2008-2017)

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Brisbane Lions captain Tom Rockliff’s new attitude, skipper backs coach Justin Leppitsch

BRISBANE Lions skipper Tom Rockliff says a new “mellowed out” attitude is going to help him become a better captain in 2016.

In his first year as captain Rockliff’s Lions finished second-last on the ladder while the midfielder himself played just 16 games, his lowest total since a solitary outing in 2009.

It was what Rockliff called “one of the most challenging years” of his career, but he believes it was valuable experience as he leads his young side into the new season.

“I’ve learned to be a lot more patient and I’ve sort of mellowed out a little bit, which is a little bit hard to believe at times,” Rockliff said on Fox Sports News’ AFL Tonight.

“I still play fierce when I’m out there but it’s important I’m also a calming influence on the group.”
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The Boys Are Up And About

Tom Rockliff is confident that his injury interrupted pre-season is behind him.

The 26-year-old missed all three NAB Challenge matches but will line-up for the Lions in their opening round match against the West Coast Eagles tomorrow.

"I'm ready to go. I've ticked all the boxes I needed to the last fortnight.

"It would have been nice to play that last NAB game but unfortunately it wasn't the way it panned out. I just had a minor tweak in the back - that's all fine now."
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Lions Rule Out Rockliff for Cats, Suns

BRISBANE has confirmed skipper Tom Rockliff will miss the next two weeks with a calf injury. Scans on Monday confirmed Rockliff strained his right calf from Saturday night’s loss against North Melbourne and comes on the back of similar back-related hamstring tightness that kept him out of the NAB Challenge.

He also has nasty bone bruising in a forearm.

Before confirmation of Rockliff’s injury, football manager Matthew Francis said it was unlikely Rockliff would play against the Cats. “Rocky is probably doubtful now more than questionable but we are still half a chance with Richie,’’ he said. Rockliff, who took an arm injury into the match, said the buck stopped with the Lions’ senior core.

“The leaders didn’t grab hold of the game when it was there to be won and North got the momentum. We needed to stand up and wrestle that momentum back,’’ he said. “With such a young group, it is up to us to take control of the game.’’

Despite a number of costly turnovers and poor kicking at goal, Rockliff said the Lions could not afford to get frustrated with themselves. “The focus has to stay on the continued development of the group. There are always going to be errors with a young group but the effort was there,’’ he said. “We’ve played two very good, mature teams in the first two weeks and we face another one in Geelong. “If we had been 7.6 instead of 2.11 against North Melbourne it may have been a different story. It would have put them under pressure and they may have dropped their bundle. “But they capitalised on us missing a few shots and went down the other end and kicked a few. “It was a little deflating but the young boys kept fighting out the game which is a real positive.’’
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Tom Rockliff looking for better times ahead

Tom Rockliff's impassioned plea during one of the Lions' more meaningful and raw player sessions towards the end of 2015, Brisbane's annus horribilis, saw the rookie captain urge his teammates to trust him enough to confide in him.

"If you don't tell me what's going on," he said, "I can't help you." The meeting proved climactic, coming amid a tsunami of discontent that had threatened to result in another damaging player exodus and had already forced an overhaul of the club's still relatively under-resourced football department.

The first-year skipper with his self-admitted "in your face" style and control-freak tendencies was going through a long-distance relationship breakdown, was on the verge of losing his best mate in the team, Jack Redden, who did not want to play under Justin Leppitsch, all compounded by the pain and anxiety of injury and rehab.

He was reported to have fallen out with teammate Dayne Zorko, reports all involved still vehemently deny, and had probably overstepped the mark in the eyes of some players in acting as a conduit between team and coach and administration as the latter tried to get to the root of the problem.

"It was a really tough year for me personally," said Rockliff, "and there were a lot of whispers and talk of fracturing and people like Manny Lynch and Brett Burton left the footy department and I think we worked out there were people on the periphery doing some damage.

"If you've got people driving their own agendas it's impossible to have success. I think that's changed. We've all grown a bit, people have left and it's been a really good pre-season and we're a much happier locker room." Those close to Rockliff believed he needed mentors outside the coach and the club. They advised him to prioritise his teammates' concerns ahead of Leppitsch and other Lions bosses.

And Rockliff in turn sought an audience with Mark Bouris, the former Wizard Home Loans boss and TV's Celebrity Apprentice host who is also a board member of the Sydney Roosters. The young skipper had read and enjoyed Bouris's self-help manual and flew to Sydney over the summer for a one-hour meeting with Bouris who knew nothing about Rockliff and little about his football club.

"No one's a perfect leader," said Rockliff. "Luke Hodge is the best captain in the AFL and he was picked up for drink driving and then he captained his team to a premiership. He [Bouris] spoke to me about how to manage people and players and how to make them feel involved. I realised people like to talk about themselves and it helps them.

"He also spoke to me about learning how to get away sometimes. I always took other people's problems with me. When you get elevated people tend to pick gaps and cracks in your leadership style.

"I think I've learned to be a bit more calm and try not to let frustrations get in the way. I've always been in your face. At times I wish I didn't think about things so much. And I do get frustrated at times. For instance, if the boys have the wrong socks on it frustrates the hell out of me." The Benalla-raised footballer, overlooked in the 2008 national draft and picked up by Brisbane the following pre-season, was promoted to the leadership group at the Lions at 21 after 40 games.

During Michael Voss's last season as coach Rockliff made no secret of his disenchantment with the club's football operation and, like so many other teammates, wanted out. When Leppitsch arrived the coach saw the player was well and truly on the outer and convinced him to stay.

Rockliff re-signed and although not out of contract until the end of 2017 is in negotiations for a new long-term agreement that would keep him at Brisbane until 2021. "They took a chance on me when no one else did," he said. "I can't see myself anywhere else. I'm hopeful we work everything out." Rockliff replaced Jed Adcock as captain shortly before his 25th birthday at the start of last season, after successive best and fairests and having become an elite midfielder. No one was more surprised than Adcock when the players voted for Rockliff and the deposed skipper was delisted by Brisbane at the end of last season after knocking back an offer to remain as captain of the Lions' undermanned NEAFL side.

For Rockliff the club's off-field divisions and 2015 on-field woes – the Lions won just four games and finished 17th – mirrored not only his personal issues but also his football. He suffered two lots of broken ribs, a punctured lung, concussion and only in the final third of the season was able to salvage his own form. He returns from more injury to lead Brisbane against the Western Bulldogs this weekend.

"It's been another frustration," he said, of the fact that himself, Pearce Hanley, Dayne Beams, Daniel Rich and Dayne Zorko have not once played together as a midfield combination.

Rockliff had to calm himself down last Saturday before entering the rooms at half-time of the QClash to urge his teammates not to focus on anything but the game after the Steven May hit on Stefan Martin. "It was a credit to the boys," he said, "the way they fought it out." Now single and living with a family friend 10 years his senior from Benalla – plumber Mark Mills whose 5am starts and long hours remind Rockliff how fortunate he is – the Lions leader continues to fret on behalf of his club and its unique circumstances.

He laments all manner of mistakes such as the poor financial decision by a previous administration in selling the car park opposite the Gabba for a faction of the price it commanded some years later. He will push the AFL Players' Association to enforce three-year contracts for first-year players – not two – and firmly believes the Brisbane NEAFL side should play in a nationwide reserves competition.

Rockliff and teammate Dayne Beams addressed their struggling reserves on Tuesday after another crippling 20-goal defeat. "Our players just don't get to develop at the rate of players in the VFL or the SANFL," he said. "Ourselves and the Suns are trying to grow the game and our academies and we're not getting a fair chance.

"I know there would be issues for the local leagues but they need to look at an AFL reserves comp." Of all those players who departed the year that he remained, Rockliff said the one whose absence has hurt the club the most is Elliot Yeo.

He remains buoyed by the fact that player signatures like dominoes are regularly falling into place at present (only Lewis Taylor, Sam Mayes and Josh Green remain unsigned with only Mayes reportedly looking elsewhere).

And he remains convinced that like his body the fractures are healing.
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Fascinating warts and all article by Caroline Wilson already being discussed in the Media Watch thread.
 
KO'd Lion cleared to play

And Leppitsch says captain Tom Rockliff should join Martin as an inclusion for the trip south. Martin and Rockliff trained at Coorparoo this morning and will be closely monitored by medical staff before the Lions name their 22.

Rockliff ran 12km on Monday and has overcome a calf problem. “You would have thought if you can do that, near game loads, he would be unlikely to miss unless he has a re-occurrence,’’ Leppitsch said.
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Brisbane captain Tom Rockliff says Lions deserved to lose to Western Bulldogs after getting carried away with Q-Clash win

BRISBANE captain Tom Rockliff says the Lions got carried away with themselves after the QClash win and got what they deserved against the Western Bulldogs on Saturday night. The 53-point loss to the rampant Dogs at Etihad Stadium was in stark contrast to the stirring victory over the Suns seven days earlier.

The Bulldogs smashed Brisbane in contested possessions (176-125), inside 50 entries (71-31), clearances (44-25), centre clearances (19-8), free kicks (24-12) and disposals (447-328). The disappointment in the Lions rooms was palpable as the players knew they had let themselves down. They put on brave faces at Sunday’s family day in Melbourne.

Rockliff said the preparation for the second-placed Bulldogs was below par and the Lions paid a heavy price. “You talk about handling winning and handling losing. That’s probably the most disappointing thing,’’ he said. “I’m not sure whether or not we took things for granted. With our preparation, I’m not sure we did everything right to get ready for this game.

“The Bulldogs clearly wanted it more.’’ Rockliff said the buck stopped with the team’s leaders, who needed to lift for the clash with contested football kings Sydney at the Gabba on Sunday. “We got out-hunted around the footy ... we got killed in centre-square bounces,’’ he said.

“We think we can control that area because most of our leaders are in that area. It falls squarely on our shoulders and we have to bounce back against the Swans. “They’ll be a massive test for us. We have been poor in contested footy for a number of years and taking on Sydney, there’s no better challenge.’’
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All fans suspected something like this would occur, but I am just amazed that this club continuosly gets caught up with thinking how good they are after win, when backing up the following week.
 

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Rockliff's Frustrating Run

TOM Rockliff will see a hamstring specialist as the Brisbane Lions skipper seeks more opinions on how to prevent his recurrent soft tissue injuries.
Rockliff left the field during the second quarter of Sunday's loss to Port Adelaide, and scan results showed some minor hamstring damage, ensuring he will miss this weekend's match against Collingwood. It continues a frustrating run for the midfielder, who has already endured back-related hamstring and calf problems in 2016.

Although this injury is unrelated to those, Lions football manager Matt Francis said Rockliff would investigate all options to get things right. "It gives us an opportunity to not only address the tweak he received during the game, but also go back to strengthen the neural side," Francis told AFL.com.au. "They're independent and different, but we'll spend the time while he's out to address all the issues related to his hamstring and back. "He'll go through a rigorous strengthening and rehabilitation program around his hamstring.

"The next step is to get the best advice around and get a second opinion from a hamstring expert to determine the best course of action and program to put him through. "We don't anticipate it being a long-term injury ... but while he's out he'll be addressing everything around his body to get him 100 per cent right."

Rockliff has played five games this season – and two of those he left early with injury. There is no timeframe on his absence, but it is expected to be on the light side. "It's frustrating for Tommy, he's a competitor and he's very professional in his recovery," Francis said. "He'll come back bigger and stronger."
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Rockliff frustrated by latest setback

FRUSTRATED Brisbane captain Tom Rockliff says there is a new, painful twist in his ongoing hamstring injury woes. Rockliff limped off in the second quarter of Sunday’s 77-point loss to Port Adelaide. The Lions do not expect him to be available for Saturday night’s Gabba clash with Collingwood but should know on Tuesday how long he will spend on the sidelines.

Rockliff said the injury was different to the back-related hamstring injury that hampered his pre-season. His knee drove into the Adelaide Oval turf and he wrenched his hip. The next time he went to kick the ball, he clutched at his right hamstring and hobbled off. It continues Rockliff’s injury dramas after he missed a large chunk of 2015 with broken ribs. A calf tear also interrupted the start of his 2016 campaign.

“It is frustrating, no doubt,” Rockliff said. “I get back, feel good, start playing some decent footy then something else goes. It’s been a constant now for the last two years. “I felt really good yesterday (Sunday). My knee took a divot out of the ground and it stretched my hip flexor. “I think it’s more to do with my hip and pelvis this time. The back has been really good. “This feels different to what I’ve had in the past ... it seems to be one thing after another but it’s a contact sport and injuries are just one of those things.’’

Rockliff agreed with coach Justin Leppitsch, who slammed the Brisbane midfield’s efforts against the Power. The skipper said the on-ball division left the young defence further exposed after veteran fullback Daniel Merrett was a late withdrawal due to illness.

“The way we started against Port was a good sign (Brisbane led by nine points at quarter-time) but then things went wrong and we couldn’t fix it. That’s on us in the midfield,’’ Rockliff said. “The return of Dayne Beams was a real positive (30 disposals and a goal) but when you’ve got a young defence, you’ve got to look after them and give them more support. “Losing ‘Rodge’ (Merrett) was a blow because he is a mainstay of the defence but we didn’t help much either.’’

Brisbane have been ultra-competitive at home in 2016 but have been pumped by West Coast, Geelong, the Bulldogs and Port on the road. Rockliff said the away game results were symptomatic of being a young side. “With lists like ours, that can sometimes be expected. You play better at home but you can get spooked (away),’’ he said. “It’s still no excuse for our yoyo performances.’’
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Recovery Report

Rockliff limped off the field in the second quarter of Sunday’s 77-point loss to Port Adelaide. An MRI on Monday afternoon revealed a small tear in his right hamstring. It continues a frustrating run for the midfielder, who has already endured back-related hamstring and calf problems in 2016.

“He’s had some problems in that area in the past so we’ll have to make sure we get the strength back into him before we get him back on the field,” Lemcke said. “We anticipate he’ll probably miss at least two weeks at this point in time.”
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Rockliff's 'good result' on hamstring strain

BRISBANE Lions captain Tom Rockliff expects to miss no more than a fortnight following his latest hamstring injury. Rockliff, 26, left the field during the second quarter of Sunday's loss to Port Adelaide, and scan results showed some minor hamstring damage.

The Lions skipper will definitely be sidelined for Saturday night's clash against Collingwood at the Gabba and will be touch and go for the club's trip to play Melbourne at the MCG in round nine. "I should only miss one or two (weeks)," Rockliff told RSN927 on Wednesday morning. "It is a good result, but I don't want to rush back and have it happen again in another three weeks time."

Rockliff has played five games this season and he has been forced to leave the ground on two of those occasions because of injury. As revealed by AFL.com.au on Tuesday, the Lions will take the opportunity to send Rockliff to a hamstring specialist to assess the reasons behind his recurring soft-tissue problems.

The Lions captain admitted it was a frustrating period in his 122-game career. "You play two or three games and start to feel like you're on top of the ground and then get injured, go through the rehab process and then it takes a couple of games to get going again," Rockliff said.
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Star Lions Tom Rockliff, Dayne Beams have scans to determine 2016 future

BRISBANE Lions prime movers Tom Rockliff and Dayne Beams are undergoing tests on Monday afternoon to determine their fate for the remainder of 2016. Rockliff is consulting a hamstring specialist in Canberra with Lions head physio Shane Lemcke to determine the route of his recurring problems.

The captain is expected to miss Sunday's match against Melbourne at the MCG, but the club is hopeful of formulating a rehab program to limit his time on the sidelines. Rockliff has suffered hamstring and calf injuries related to a neural problem in his back, and then suffered a fresh tear against Port Adelaide in round seven.
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Injury Update: Beams & Rockliff
BRISBANE Lions prime movers Tom Rockliff and Dayne Beams will learn more about the extent of their injuries after undergoing tests on Monday afternoon.

Rockliff is consulting a hamstring specialist with Lions head physio Shane Lemcke to determine the route of his recurring problems.

The captain is expected to miss Sunday's match against Melbourne at the MCG, but the club is hopeful of formulating a rehab program to limit his time on the sidelines.

Rockliff has suffered hamstring and calf injuries related to a neural problem in his back, and then suffered a fresh tear against Port Adelaide in round seven.
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