OUTSTANDING young midfielder Jack Trengove says he is relishing his first year as an AFL player, but it has also been an exhausting expereince.
The No.2 selection in last year’s NAB AFL Draft spoke about his inaugural season at a media conference at Gosch’s Paddock on Tuesday, before a membership clinic featuring 600-plus Melbourne kids.
“It’s pretty draining. It’s a long year and we’re 14 rounds down already and I’ve played 13 games, so it’s been a great experience,” Trengove said.
“I’ve loved every minute of it, but at the same time, it’s pretty taxing on the body and the mind.
“I’m feeling really refreshed and ready to go for the second half of the year.”
The No.2 selection in last year’s NAB AFL Draft spoke about his inaugural season at a media conference at Gosch’s Paddock on Tuesday, before a membership clinic featuring 600-plus Melbourne kids.
“It’s pretty draining. It’s a long year and we’re 14 rounds down already and I’ve played 13 games, so it’s been a great experience,” Trengove said.
“I’ve loved every minute of it, but at the same time, it’s pretty taxing on the body and the mind.
“I’m feeling really refreshed and ready to go for the second half of the year.”
As an early draft choice, the South Australian said he felt pressure every week, but he loves the challenge associated with it.
“There has always been expectation of a new kid coming into a club and the AFL,” Trengove said.
“I’ve been lucky to play a few games early on and get a bit of experience. I haven’t felt the pressure too much, but you always put pressure on yourself going out each week, because you want to perform.
“There are always going to be pressures around … I’m doing everything I can to meet them.”
Trengove said playing against premiership contender St Kilda last round was yet another learning curve in his development.
“They’re one of the better teams in the comp, and they’re looking to win a flag in the next few years, so it was a good test for us,” he said.
“We showed that we could match it with them for the first three quarters, but unfortunately we let ourselves down in the last [quarter] and that’s the result from that.
“You learn a lot from those games … you can go with them for the majority of the game and learn a lot from playing on the better players."
He said that rebounding against Essendon this Sunday at the MCG is another important stepping stone in Melbourne’s year.
“They’ve come off a heavy loss and we’re sitting around the same spot on the ladder … so we’re going to go out and have a red hot crack and hopefully have a win on Sunday,” Trengove said.
Trengove said Melbourne’s aim for the rest of the season is to regain its consistency.
“We were always looking for improvement and, right from the start of the year, it wasn’t about making the finals or anything,” he said.
“We’ve shown throughout the year so far that we can match it with some of the better teams in the comp and play well … we’re really working on that now.”
Meanwhile, Trengove said he was unsure when skipper James McDonald, who is battling a hamstring injury, will return to the side.
“He’s back running around … in the next few weeks, hopefully he can pop up and play again,” he said.
“It’ll be great to have our captain back playing.
“He’s done a bit of training, not full training yet, so we’ll see how he goes this week.”
“There has always been expectation of a new kid coming into a club and the AFL,” Trengove said.
“I’ve been lucky to play a few games early on and get a bit of experience. I haven’t felt the pressure too much, but you always put pressure on yourself going out each week, because you want to perform.
“There are always going to be pressures around … I’m doing everything I can to meet them.”
Trengove said playing against premiership contender St Kilda last round was yet another learning curve in his development.
“They’re one of the better teams in the comp, and they’re looking to win a flag in the next few years, so it was a good test for us,” he said.
“We showed that we could match it with them for the first three quarters, but unfortunately we let ourselves down in the last [quarter] and that’s the result from that.
“You learn a lot from those games … you can go with them for the majority of the game and learn a lot from playing on the better players."
He said that rebounding against Essendon this Sunday at the MCG is another important stepping stone in Melbourne’s year.
“They’ve come off a heavy loss and we’re sitting around the same spot on the ladder … so we’re going to go out and have a red hot crack and hopefully have a win on Sunday,” Trengove said.
Trengove said Melbourne’s aim for the rest of the season is to regain its consistency.
“We were always looking for improvement and, right from the start of the year, it wasn’t about making the finals or anything,” he said.
“We’ve shown throughout the year so far that we can match it with some of the better teams in the comp and play well … we’re really working on that now.”
Meanwhile, Trengove said he was unsure when skipper James McDonald, who is battling a hamstring injury, will return to the side.
“He’s back running around … in the next few weeks, hopefully he can pop up and play again,” he said.
“It’ll be great to have our captain back playing.
“He’s done a bit of training, not full training yet, so we’ll see how he goes this week.”
