CLINT BARTRAM - THIS IS YOUR LIFE SO FAR

[Demonland 73,140]

by George on the Outer

Our group had our first get together with Clint Bartram on the weekend. This was indeed the first time that we had actually met Clint "up close and personal" as his success last year meant that his match-day commitments didn't allow pre-game socialising.

So the blight of injury has had some positive for our group but what a gem of a player we have as our own!

Clint arrived exactly on time as planned, without the benefit of someone organising him. For parents of teenagers this would otherwise be seen as something of a miracle, but Clint's parents can be very proud that they have an intelligent, well mannered, well spoken, well presented son, and just to top it off he can play some pretty good football as well!

Still it must have been a bit daunting for a 19 year old to face a group such as ours, particularly as we represent a diverse collection of individuals who have only formed an association through the Internet. And we also have some reputational baggage produced by various “over the top” individuals on our respective sites. All the same Clint was quickly comfortable and sat down to be interviewed by our specialist in these matters – Whispering Jack.

Jack started by making Clint feel at home by giving him a copy of the Geelong Advertiser, which for those who don't know is the daily newspaper from his home town.

Jack asked some questions about Clint and his football history, and the group were able to learn that he had played with Ocean Grove footy club, but only after moving from another (Leopold I think it was) who were unable to fit him in their side. I'll bet that they are regretting that decision today, as there are benefits which flow to the junior club from which players are selected.

Clint also trained at the AIS having won selection to that position. When he related the list of players who were also provided with that privilege, our group realised how fortunate that we were able to pick Clint up at number 60 in the draft. It was simply unbelievable that he had been overlooked so often to that point.

Clint spoke of the rigours of training and playing football at AFL level. The weekly recovery process takes days and is difficult both mentally and physically. Imagine getting out of bed early in Melbournes winter, just so you can go down to the beach or sea baths to walk around in the freezing water. And after that, as he explained, you really don’t feel like going back to sleep. (perhaps that is something that parents of teenagers may contemplate for their children…).

He then explained how the recovery is tied in with the preparation for the next game, and how a short turn-around severely impact on both. He also told of how the coach is frustrated by these as he attempt to get the players up and ready for the next game, but can’t get access to them until they are physically ready. This also goes a long way to explaining the often heard expression that in order to play a good season, you have to have a good pre-season. It would seem that any physical development has to occur before the matches begin.

Clint spoke of his success last year, and how he was assigned tagging roles to some of the most experienced and damaging mid-field players in the competition. When asked who was the most difficult to handle, the name Chapman from Geelong came quickly as he was so hard to chase all day.

Clint told the group of his injuries and how following the long rehabilitation needed to overcome his ankle damage at the end of last season, that an unfortunate training accident saw him injury his knee as well. In a tackle his leg became jammed behind another player and his knee cartlidge was similarly jammed, with his leg in an extended position. He then couldn't "unlock" his knee, which caused great consternation to the training and medical staff as this is apparently a rare event.

Arthroscopy and some trimming of the affected cartlidge has him now recovering, but it will be a few weeks before we see him on the field. He also anticipates that he may have to return through Sandringham, as he recognises the value of match fitness, and to use his own words "it doesn’t matter how much running you do, it just isn’t the same…"

Well after about 45 minutes of "grilling" from the group, Clint agreed to photos of himself and the group. Hopefully, the one of Clint alone will be used in the new Home Page of Demonland soon.

The group then broke up to get to the match with the expectation that we always see a win after our events. Wouldn’t you know it the umpires cruelly denied us our winning streak, so Jack is looking for some new superstition on which we can pin our faith for the next event ...

For those that weren't able to make the day, I hope that this small report gives you some insight into the goings on, and I have also attached the photos that I took for the group.

On another small positive, I have had contact from Sally Trevena from the NSW Demons. Sally joined us for one event last year, but travels infrequently to the games. However, she was so impressed by what she saw with our group that she made a recommendation to do similarly with the NSW Demons and they have. This year they are sponsoring TJ. So in an indirect way, our group is bigger than we think…

Thank you to everyone who has joined the group for this year. We have now attained more support from our group than the cost of the sponsorship, so this extra money ($350 at the present time) will be sent to the club. Thank you for those that could make it along on Sunday. For those that couldn't get there, we hope to see you at the next event.

Finally, both Jack and I are keen to make this grow but also to continue to make it worthwhile for everyone. So if you have any friends who may be interested, please introduce them, but also if there are any ideas which can make it more attractive then let us know.

Again thank you for your support, and here's hoping that the Demons can have a bit of on-field success in the near future. With the return of Clint to the side, I feel we can be assured of this, but given that things don’t appear to be working out too well at the moment, it may mean that our meeting with Craig Cameron at year end will be very, very interesting ...