Scully ‘risks it’ with Hawks

TOM Scully admits there is risk.

But, while the Hawthorn recruit has no timeline on a return to football, he is confident he will have an impact in 2019.

The former Giant and Demon shifted to Hawthorn in the recent trade period and conceded that there was “an element of risk” for the Hawks in taking him on in the midst of a significant ankle injury.

He broke his ankle in Round 2 of this year and did not play another game. He said the cartilage damage that remained from the injury had forced patience in his recovery.

But the 27-year-old has taken heart from the Hawks’ vow that they wll get his injury right.

“I’ve been reassured it’s heading in the right direction and I’ve had some positive results of late,” he said.

“If anything, (the medical) actually reassured me they’re confident they can get my ankle right and for me that was a big thing, having someone saying, ‘We’re prepared to take your ankle on.’

“Obviously, there’s an element of risk for everyone involved here, but, as I said, it’s not all doom and gloom — I’m pretty confident.

“(Hawthorn’s) track record speaks for itself. Jaeger O’Meara, Shaun Burgoyne … guys like that who have had relatively serious injuries have been able to play some good football and play consistently.

“That’s something that certainly appealed to me about Hawthorn, and the confidence that the medical staff have.”

Scully, who signed at Hawthorn for three years, said he intended to increase his training load with an eye to joining the main group in the new year.

“It’s feeling OK at the moment. I’m going to start some light loading this week.

“Everything’s on track. It’s going to be a long process, but one I’m confident that I can get right and the Hawks are really confident that if it’s managed well I can be back playing footy next year.”

Scully said once he reached the 14-week mark without significant improvement, he knew it was worse than expected. And it has been frustrating. “No doubt. It was a significant injury,” he said. “That’s the most frustrating thing. You can’t get out and do what you want to do.

“You do have to be patient in this process. That’s something I’ve done. I’ve just got to continue to build and respect the injury and hopefully get back next year.”