She’s one particular of the AFLW’s brightest rising stars – but items haven’t often appear easily for Ellie McKenzie.
Crafting for nib Health and fitness, the Richmond teenager and amount just one decide in the 2020 AFLW draft has opened up on the issues she has faced on her route to the elite level, and the conclusion to go after an Aussie Policies profession relatively than the myriad of other sports she excelled at in childhood.
Amongst the setbacks? A definitely bizarre personal injury that delayed her start to the to start with AFLW period of 2022.
“I skipped the opening online games this year for the reason that of a medical procedures in August that I desired when it was found out I experienced an more muscle mass in my calf that was triggering concerns,” McKenzie wrote.
“The surgeon told me it was some thing that impacted a lot less than one p.c of individuals in the entire world.
“It started out out as ankle and calf pain close to the stop of final year. I just brushed it off – assumed it was just overload. I considered it would settle with the break, but when I acquired back again into managing, it however hadn’t absent.
“There were being lots of scans – MRIs, ultrasounds – and it took 6 or seven of them just before it was discovered that my soleus muscle mass in my calf extended lower into my Achilles than normal.
“Because I’d been in that elite pathway for a few of many years, at that level, I had just trained so tough that the muscle experienced developed. And it was impinging on all the things about my ankle and my calf.
“They just removed it. Because it is so unusual, the physios hadn’t expert an personal injury like that the rehab was a discovering method for all of us.
“The timeline was unsure, and I didn’t know if I was going to be able to enjoy at all this period. Sticking to my rehab and with the physio’s aid, I received back for 50 percent the period, which we all were being a little bit shocked about.
“Ultimately, it was a relief. At first, we truly did not know was completely wrong with me.”
Richmond’s Ellie McKenzie evades North Melbourne’s Jasmine Garner. (Image by Darrian Traynor/Getty Visuals)
McKenzie also opened up on her exceptional working experience on the night time she was taken with the Tigers’ prized pick 1 – happening at the height of Victoria’s COVID-19 constraints in Oct 2020, celebrations were being understandably muted.
“The two months main into it [the draft], I begun to get pressured,” she wrote.
“And we were at household in isolation at that issue way too, so I couldn’t go out and see pals to take my intellect off issues.
“It finished up currently being a whole shock. For me at least – mum informed me afterwards she’d identified out two months previously that I would be going as quantity a single. I was most likely far more stunned that she managed to retain the magic formula. If the roles experienced been reversed, I would have certainly blurted it out.
“Being a stress filled period of time, I was lucky that I had faculty at the exact same time. I appeared for factors to hold my brain occupied through the day and school was a fantastic distraction. I am self-enthusiastic and independent when it comes to most factors. I relished being at residence and becoming in a position to get all my work carried out early and then have the relaxation of the working day.
“I got into a excellent program. My brother and I established up a gymnasium in our backyard and I’d do that in the afternoon. When it comes to exercise, I’m normally quite self-inspired.
“Obviously, COVID was not a terrific time, especially with my age team remaining in year 12. We skipped out on graduations and competing in the top rated age group at college. But I believe the silver lining is that it has manufactured our age group self-determined and unbiased and set us up heading into grownup life.
“From a lifestyle point of view, probably Covid has been valuable in some way.”
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