JUST before the midway stage of the 2013 season, Jack Fitzpatrick thought his AFL career was set to end.

Given he had suffered several injuries since he was drafted at No.50 in the 2009 NAB AFL Draft and had just made three appearances up until round nine this year, his future was vulnerable at Melbourne.

After impressing in the VFL, the forward/ruckman finally got an opportunity and played his fourth AFL match against Hawthorn at the MCG in round 10.

“Neeldy (Mark Neeld) picked me to play against Hawthorn and I played OK. I held my spot for next week to play Collingwood on Queen’s Birthday and it was the first time I’d played two games in a row in the AFL,” he told melbournefc.com.au.

“By the second half of that Collingwood game, I just settled in a little bit better and the pace wasn’t so quick. I didn’t feel as rushed and I felt a little bit better in the second half.”

Fitzpatrick managed to hold his spot in the side for the rest of the season, except when concussion ended his season prematurely following round 21. He finished the 2013 season with 11 games and 15 goals, including four against the Brisbane Lions in Darwin and three against the Sydney Swans at the MCG.

But a change in focus and attitude helped him enormously in the second half of the season.

“I missed the first round of the VFL and it just wasn’t going so well for me. It was frustrating, but I played my first VFL game back and played really well. We played Essendon at Windy Hill and we won by 90-odd points and I played a really good game,” he said.

“My focus was just on enjoying footy, because to be honest, at that stage, I was out of contract and I couldn’t see myself getting another one here to be honest.

“I thought ‘OK, I play footy because I enjoy it, so why don’t I just keep it that way’. I’ve completely relaxed and I’ve enjoyed footy and I played with no fear.

“I thought ‘if this is the last 12 weeks, let’s make the most of it and enjoy it’. All of a sudden, I came in and earned my chance to play in the AFL side.”

Fitzpatrick, who made his AFL debut in the final home and away round against Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval in 2011, said he always believed he could make it at the highest level, despite his lack of opportunity and doubters.

“I’ve always had a lot of self-belief,” he said.

“No one gets to AFL standard without believing that they can play. That might sound arrogant, but that’s the way it is.

“[What this year] has taught me, particularly the first half of this year is that you really need to earn your chance and play good consistent footy, week in week out and just be resilient.”