http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/teams/richmond/chris-yarrans-personal-trainer-tom-couch-reveals-he-set-his-sights-on-afl-return-during-trip-to-thailand/news-story/8e12aa0c796343d3c9d7db75e994cdd4
For those who can't view past the pay wall:The moment Yarran set sights on AFL returnJON ANDERSON
Herald Sun
October 30, 2016TWO months ago he would have said “little chance” and six weeks ago “unlikely”, but events of the past month have convinced Tom Couch that Richmond’s Chris Yarran is a realistic chance to reignite his AFL career.
Yarran, 25, hasn’t played since joining the Tigers from Carlton a year ago, having been granted indefinite leave to deal with personal issues.
But Couch, 28, who has spent three months working as Yarran’s personal trainer, believes the dynamic running back/small forward regained the eye of the tiger after they visited Thailand last month.
Chris Yarran with Tom Couch in Thailand. Picture: Supplied“There was a moment over there when I began to see a different side of him and that’s become more and more frequent as the weeks have passed. Now I consistently see someone who talks and walks like an AFL footballer,” said Couch, who played three games for Melbourne in 2012.
“There was this day where we toured the Phi Phi Islands and that night watched the Sydney-Adelaide final. All of a sudden, he turned into this bloke I hadn’t met or seen before. He said, ‘I should be out there’.
“I asked him what he meant and he said, ‘I mightn’t have played for 12 months but I could still run rings around half these blokes’.
“When he said that, that’s when I knew we had a chance. It was the first positive thing he had to say about himself all year. Up until then he was always doubting himself. From then on, it was about building on that momentum.
Chris Yarran has been working hard to get himself back in shape. Picture: Supplied“Then we got back and a couple of days later he said he wanted to go to the Geelong-Sydney final. That was another big step because he hadn’t been to a game all year, partly because he didn’t want people to recognise him and didn’t know what they would say to him.”
Yarran will report to Richmond on November 7 for pre-season training with the first-to-fourth-year players.
Couch says he has already noticed a change in the 25-year-old’s attitude towards training but still has a way to go.
“There has been a positive change in Yaz’s life in recent times and his training has improved as a result,” Couch said.
Chris Yarran and personal trainer Tom Couch run together as Yarran begins his road back to the AFL. Picture: Yuri Kouzmin“No longer am I out the front kicking and screaming and yelling at him. Now he’s out the front wanting to train.
“He’s embracing rather than resisting the pain that comes with hard training and that is a massive indicator. He’s training because he wants to play AFL, not because someone wants him to.
“At this stage, he isn’t capable of beginning training with the main group on Monday week when they return. However, recent developments have placed him in a much better state mentally and his training performances have been excellent.
“I’d expect him to be training with the main group before Christmas.”
http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/teams/richmond/chris-yarrans-personal-trainer-tom-couch-reveals-he-set-his-sights-on-afl-return-during-trip-to-thailand/news-story/8e12aa0c796343d3c9d7db75e994cdd4