Top SA prospect Kaine Baldwin’s comeback from knee injury put on hold, leaving potential AFL audition in limbo
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Kaine Baldwin was supposed to be making his comeback from a knee reconstruction in the SANFL this week.
Instead, Glenelg’s highly-touted AFL draft prospect has no game to play and is not even certain there will be a draft this year.
With all matches coming to a screeching halt because of the coronavirus pandemic,
Baldwin – a 17-year-old, 194cm key forward who has been likened to Richmond premiership forward Tom Lynch and Fremantle great Matthew Pavlich – has had his long-awaited comeback put on hold.
And he doesn’t know when he will get his chance to impress AFL recruiters as football Australia-wide is shut down because of the global health crisis.
“It’s frustrating because it’s been a bit of a process coming back from the torn ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) and after a long time out I was primed and ready to go and looking forward to getting out there and playing again,’’ said Baldwin, who some recruiters have rated as a top-10 draft prospect.
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The articulate Baldwin – named in the Australian under-17 team before being injured last year – understands there is a bigger health picture at stake.
But he is uncertain just what effect football’s holding pattern will have on his draft chances.
“I guess that’s the great unknown at this stage,’’ Baldwin said.
“It will depend on how much, if any, footy we play later in the year.’’
Clubs have not seen Baldwin play a full game since the end of the 2018 season.
Renowned for crashing packs and taking big marks, Baldwin broke down in the second quarter of Glenelg’s reserves clash against Norwood in round one last season.
He ruptured the ACL in his right knee when he flew for a mark in the second quarter and landed awkwardly.
After 12 months of rigorous rehabilitation, which he says has made him fitter, stronger and more agile, he wanted to put himself on show.
“Absolutely, through my rehab I’ve become even more confident in my ability,’’ the Year 12 Westninster School captain said.
“The rehab gave me an opportunity to reset and focus on areas that I really needed to improve, such as becoming more versatile and working on my ground balls so I can put my hand up for more midfield time.
“I’ve become a fair bit fitter and stronger (putting on 4kg of muscle to tip the scales at 93kg) and I was pretty confident in how I would have gone if I’d had the chance to come back and play.
“It’s pretty important for me to play again this year in terms of the draft and showing what I can do, given I haven’t played for so long.
“At the same time, I just miss football because I haven’t played in ages.’’
A member of SA’s AFL Academy Hub, Baldwin had hoped to play a key role in the Croweaters’ AFL under-18s championships campaign.
But that carnival, with matches supposed to start in June, is almost certainly off.
And with AFL clubs standing down about 80 per cent of their staff while football is on hold, including recruiters and list managers, Baldwin does not expect to have too many early-season interviews.
It is likely that AFL list sizes will be reduced next season and that the number of players drafted this year – chief executive Gillon McLachlan said he was confident a draft would still occur – cut dramatically, possibly to as few as 35.
There have even been calls for the draft age to be raised to 19, which would rule Baldwin ineligible this year.
Baldwin, renowned for his strong leadership and sporting a streamlined haircut after shaving his head as part of a CanTeen fundraiser he helped organise at school, said if he can’t get on the field this season, recruiters would be taking a leap of faith on him off his under-16 year.
With no club to train at because of the COVID-19 shutdown, Baldwin has been working out privately with classmate Harvey Bock, who plays at West Adelaide and is a former state under-16 teammate.
He also uses another mate’s home gym.
“It’s tough when you can’t train with your club or school, but I’m lucky that I have a good support network around me, which is keeping me up to speed,’’ Baldwin said.
Originally published as Top SA prospect Kaine Baldwin’s comeback from knee injury put on hold, leaving potential AFL audition in limbo