Majak Daw makes incredible comeback in Marsh Community Series
It’s hard to equate the player that took the field at Marvel Stadium with the same figure whose body was almost broken 14 months ago. Inside Majak Daw’s inspiring comeback.
Nrth Melb
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New North Melbourne midfielder Aiden Bonar says the players can't help but be inspired by Majak Daw’s incredible comeback to football.
Daw played his first senior game with the club on Friday night – albeit in a pre-season match – since he fell from the Bolte Bridge in December 2018.
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While the powerful defender had a quiet night with only five disposals against the Western Bulldogs, Bonar and coach Rhyce Shaw expect him to benefit from the experience.
“He had been playing really well in the intra-clubs,” former Giant Bonar said of Daw.
“He is a great character. When I came to the club (late last year), I loved him from the first day. He is a really good fellow.
“It was good to see him clunking a few marks.”
For Daw, it’s about football now, rather than his remarkable recovery, or the night 14 months ago that changed his life.
You get the feeling the 28-year-old defender and his footy club are happy for it to be that way from now on.
He may have been more than a little rusty but it was another step forward in what has already been a production line of boxes ticked since the incident.
There was learning to walk again, and then to run. There was the mending of bones and the transformation of his mental wellbeing.
Few thought Daw would ever play again, let alone run and compete the way he did against the Bulldogs.
Daw’s will to return has almost been unshakeable.
He hasn’t played in an official AFL game since his 50th match — at the same venue — in Round 23, 2018.
North Melbourne’s will to commit so much time, energy, care and support to Daw has been significant.
It’s hard to equate the physical specimen he is today to the same figure whose body was almost broken 14 months ago.
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Daw arrived at Marvel Stadium more than two hours before the start, wandering into the Kangaroos’ rooms alongside his coach Rhyce Shaw.
They shared a smile and a quick chat, with the booming blast of the music in the rooms giving a nice, relaxed feel.
It wasn’t so relaxed once he took the field. He played deep in defence, finishing with five disposals with three marks.
He looked “at sea” at times, according to SEN’s Liam Pickering, who said the Kangaroos and their comeback player had “a stinker” from which they will rebound.
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So much has happened to Daw since the incident, not the least of which has seen him becoming a father after his partner Emma McKay gave birth to their son Hendrix in August.
It was a tough start for the Roos’ 2020 campaign, and for Daw, as the Bulldogs crafted a 44-point victory.
His most significant moment came in the latter stages of the opening term when he took a strong defensive mark almost on the last line. Then he followed it up later in the game when took a fine intercept mark when the game was long gone.
He spilled a few marks he would normally take and gave up a goal late when he went too hard, but the most important thing was that he got through unscathed.
Players on both sides embraced Daw after the final siren in a nice touch.
Meanwhile, Bonar, who moved to the Kangaroos in a trade late last year, went a fair way to locking in a Round 1 berth with a solid midfield display on Friday night.
He had 15 disposals in what was a depleted midfield core in North Melbourne's loss to the Western Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium.
“It was a tough night,” he conceded.
“I think we were just trying to get players clicking, as we obviously had some big outs.
“Some of the boys who got some opportunities looked to step up and it is good to see them getting some game time.”
He said the result was disappointing, but insisted that “we can't wait (for our) next Marsh (Community Series) game”.
Bonar's form is building nicely ahead of his club’s next Marsh contest against Sydney in Hobart on March 9, but he has the club's Round 1 clash against St Kilda on March 22 in the back of his mind.
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