Sam Docherty says he was ‘really scared’ when he resumed training after knee surgery

Sam Docherty has spoken openly about the mental hurdles he faced returning from major knee surgery, and how he plans to tackle season 2019.

Carlton co-captain Sam Docherty speaks to media.

CARLTON co-captain Sam Docherty is looking to make an immediate impact on his return in 2019, confident he has cleared most of the mental hurdles associated with the knee reconstruction he had 12 months ago.

Having completed every session so far, and thriving on providing his input on the training track, the 25-year-old has been one of the best performers during the club’s pre-season, according to track watchers.

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Docherty is on track to make his AFL return against Richmond in Round 1 on March 21, when he and Patrick Cripps will lead the club full-time as its new skippers.

“I think you sort of lose the mental challenges in terms of your knees, because you do so much of the stuff you are scared about,” Docherty said.

“The first time I ran, I was scared; the first time I changed direction I was really scared; and the first time I did a high mark I was scared. But then over the repetition of doing that, you lose that once you are out on the field ... once you are out training, you just don’t notice anything that is going on with your body.”

Sam Docherty has regained confidence in his knee. Picture: Michael Klein

The return of the 2016 best-and-fairest winner and 2017 All-Australian will be a massive bonus for the Blues, who sorely missed him last season.

He is already enacting some of those lessons attained from his time working with the Carlton coaching group this year.

“Touch wood, (there’s been) no setbacks, no swelling to my knee at all,” he said. “I put myself in a position to possibly play later in the (2018) year, but we made a decision based on my career going forward that it wasn’t the smart thing to do.

“This time 12 months ago, I was sitting in bed worrying about how sore my knee was. To not only to be out at training, but to have a real influence on the group on the track is something I am really enjoying.

“It was a tough year at our footy club, and there were a wide range of emotions going through our club. For me to be able to sit back and observe from that, I found very valuable.”

Docherty said he was humbled to have share the captaincy alongside his great mate Cripps, and is confident the club will make some big inroads next year.

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