Coughlan upbeat about Tigers
Emma Quayle | June 10, 2007 | The Age
INJURED Richmond onballer Mark Coughlan says he has seen some optimistic signs in the winless Tigers and believes the club's short-term prospects are not as grim as many believe.
"It's been tough to watch this year, but at the same time I get some thrills out of seeing Nathan Foley and some of our young blokes playing well," said Coughlan, who hopes to be back in full training with his teammates by the end of the season.
The onballer had his knee reconstructed this time last year, then had the operation repeated in February after the initial graft had worn almost completely through. He has no plans to play again until next year. "They're making positive contributions and even though we haven't won a game this year I look two or three years ahead and can see those guys being really successful," he said.
"Adam Pattison is really coming through and will be a good player for us. Nathan Foley's been fantastic and Brett Deledio's showing some good maturity. Dean Polo is going to be a long-term player for us. I'm excited about guys like Shane Edwards and Andrew Collins, too.
"They're the sort of guys I look forward to playing alongside when I get back because they're coming on really quickly, and they're the ones who are going to get us back up the ladder. Things are bad now, but it's not as bad as it looks."
Coughlan ran for the first time last week, and hopes to finish out the season by training with the senior squad again. "You don't realise how lucky you are even to be able to run, when you physically haven't been able to do it," he said.
"Even to be able to run a few 100-metre strides, it lifts your confidence and it becomes a new starting point to come back to with the rest of the rehab.
"As I start doing a bit more … I'll be weaned off the bike and the boxing, and get more into the footy side of things. I'm hoping to be at a level where I can train with the rest of the side by the end of the season.
"It will be nice to finish off the season out there with the rest of the guys and it puts me in a good place getting ready for next year."
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