Although my departure from the Hawthorn football club was very much left on good terms.. great terms in fact – it none the less left me in limbo when it came to how I wanted to further my footballing career. One of the few benefits I had during my time in rehab for my previous knee reconstructions was the fact I was able to build connections and network bases that allowed my transition from football (being my job) into the another occupation that would allow me to support the commitments and opportunities that I was able to build during my time in the AFL environment. Those commitments and opportunities that were presented to me during those privileged years at the Hawthorn football were very much a bi-product of the hard work and effort that were put in during my time there and it was definitely something I wanted to sustain. Although I was unable to present myself consistently on field in the brown and gold.. I absolutely never took for granted the time I had represented the Hawks off field. Looking for a new football home was not going to be an easy task for me but it was one I was looking forward to as I was very much keen and persistent in continuing to play the game I love.

After initial consultations and discussions with Hawthorn - we decided it was best for me to be placed on the Rookie List rather than the Senior List come the start of the 2016 season as once again I was in the long term injury ward awaiting my time to get out of rehab once again as I worked hard to get myself in a position to lace up the footy boots again. I was still of the mindset of wanting to play.. To prove my worth.

After a promising first season injury free (essentially) I was so excited to continue whatever momentum I had with my football and my body as I was able to get through another whole pre season and build on the season that had just gone by. The clear focus for me this pre season was to continue to evolve my craft (through maintaining to shadow the more experienced midfielders and players that were ahead of me in the first team/best 22). I felt my body was really adapting to the rigours of being a professional footballer by trade as I had become accustomed to being a professional trainer essentially as I spent most of my early career in rehab and doing drills, conditioning and strength training in isolation… I was glad to feel more apart of the group, more than ever. The realistic fact that I had a taste of AFL last season was enough of a motivator for me to want that again.

The simple focus of contributing to the team week in and week out with the role I played as an inside midfielder meant that I was able to find clarity when it came to playing footy consistently once again - the first time in a few years.

Enjoying being back out on the field again really built my confidence in playing the game, I felt I belonged - finally I was doing what I was drafted to the club to do and that was simply to play football and put my head over the ball. The intrinsics of what I wanted to do personally throughout each match varied and was always a factor when I stepped out onto the ground and got ready for the first bounce. A positive factor (I thought) as it gave me purpose for each game as what I wanted to execute personally within the match always contributed to the team’s overall objectives each game. Being in the centre square was home for me as a footballer - my favourite part of the whole game was always the first bounce. It was where the tone of the game started. Where the scene was set. Where hopefully I could make my first impact on the match.

Another Season had passed by, almost felt like another season in the trenches as I longed to play football alongside my teammates only to be struck down with the same injury that derailed my 2012 campaign. 2013 was undoubtedly another tough grind but I felt I further matured as a player (and as a person) and developed stronger bonds with my teammates; particularly those within the rehab group with me. Another season gone.. but thankfully the Hawthorn Football hadn't lost faith in me as a player that could contribute to the team/playing group as I was rewarded with another contract; what seemed to be a nervous time as I didn't 100% how the club viewed me as a player having spent two seasons on the sidelines since being drafted - to be rewarded with another contract after all the hard work I had put in whilst recovering was enough motivation for me to really brace myself and attack the 2014 season with the right manner and mindset to hopefully finally be out on the park for the first time in two seasons. 

Everything was coming along smoothly as 2013 rolled around. A solid foundation of rehab had set me up to really attack pre season in a really focused and succinct manner.

My rehabilitation took a massive step forward after getting through the gruelling pre season camp on the Sunshine Coast before Christmas – ‘money in the bank’ as the boys used to call it – and I returned in good shape, ready to make up for lost ground as I was eager to impress and show my fellow peers the reasons as to why the Hawthorn Football Club took a chance on me back in the 2011 draft.

With my father being full of elation (with a beer in his hand) after seeing my name pop up on the screen with the 53rd pick, my phone was quickly inundated with a huge influx of messages and phone calls from my family and friends to my soon to be teammates and coaches. My dream had become a reality and it was time to get to work. My parents had always kept me level headed with how to present myself to others as they themselves always had to work hard to get to where they are now. I was ready to start at my new profession of being an AFL player along side my fellow draft class teammates in  Bradley Hill and long time close friend Jordan Kelly at the Hawthorn Football Club. I couldn't have been more excited for the journey ahead.

Where it all began for me was growing up in the south east suburb of Noble Park, Melbourne. There were always fairly strong grassroots when it came to playing Australian Rules Football with the ambition of so many young kids to one day become what they idolised on television, AFL Footballers. It was evident when it came to seeing the enjoyment of the faces of kids when they arrived to training during the week and to games on the weekend. I was no different.

My mother (Emily) being from the southern island of Philippines, Mindanao and my father (Jeffrey) from Fremantle, Western Australia - I was lucky enough to have parents that were willing to sacrifice a lot in order to provide not only the essentials for living but to also provide me a good platform in order to chase a childhood dream. In particular my father who has been on this journey with me ever since teaching me the very basics of the sport from the time I could pick up a football.