After a five-month layoff, Trent Dumont has taken a huge leap forward in his recovery from a calf injury.
Playing just over a half for North Melbourne’s VFL side on Thursday night, Dumont racked up 13 disposals in what was a solid performance for the number 14.
Dumont says while it was good to get back on the park, he’s happier about completing the workload required to progress his recovery.
“I’ve pulled up really well and I felt pretty comfortable out there ... there were a few times I was blowing pretty hard but for the most part I got a good amount of work in,” Dumont told North Media.
“There were a couple of kicks I wasn’t too happy with coming out of half-time, but I got some good ones in there too, so that’s something I’ll go to work on at training.
“For the most part I felt like it was a pretty solid effort in terms of playing my role … it was good to get my workload in.”
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Like most players coming back from injury, Dumont was on restricted game time, as he looks to ramp up his preparation for an AFL recall.
Rather than having his time on ground restricted, the hard-working on-baller says he was limited in his workloads and was only allowed a certain number of high-intensity efforts.
“I was restricted around my high-speed and top end running today, and on the wing you get a fair bit of that,” he said.
“I’d pretty much accrued most of it by half-time which shows I was working reasonably hard, so they just wanted to put me out for six minutes after half time, because that warming back up after half-time is what the injury struggles with a little bit.
“Doing that properly and getting that process right is good for the future. I got through that fine and then I was done.”
With one comeback game in the books, Dumont has set his sights firmly on an AFL recall as soon as possible.
However, he says the club won’t risk playing him at the highest level if he isn’t fit and able to contribute.
“I’d love to put my hand straight up for the AFL, but if I need to play more of VFL I’ll do that,” Dumont said.
“I’ve got a few days off over the next few days, so it’s just some rest and recovery for me now.
“I’ll do my best to put my hand up for Round 8 against Collingwood, if it’s not to be then I’ll hopefully be putting my hand up for Round 9.”
