Rivalry lifts the effort
Suns pair go back to old-style training to stay sharp for AFL return
WIN the morning, win the day.
That is the motto Suns forward Peter Wright and his teammates are living by as they go back to their roots and train in football parks and their own garages while waiting for the return of the AFL season.
It’s been an even bigger blast from the past for Wright, who has turned back the clock by doing the bulk of his training with close friend and teammate Touk Miller.
Wright, 23, and Miller, 24, would train in the off-season as teenagers back in Victoria while making their way through the nation’s underage representative programs in the hope of one day making it on to an AFL list.
Now, with the ability to only train with one other person, they have teamed up again to complete some gruelling workouts from Wright’s homemade gym at home.
“We have been doing the majority of our runs and gym sessions together so we can kick the footy,” Wright said, of routine that includes perfecting the art of making sourdough and trimming his hedges. “He brought his bigger 20kg plates over so we could do heavy squats and stuff so I have enough weights to lift and I went and bought a squat rack.
“We used to train a lot together in the off-season back in Melbourne. It takes us back a bit.
“Touk has a reputation for working hard. He has extremely high standards in the club, he is always leading the way with Sam Collins, who is another one who springs to mind who will bury himself whenever he trains.
“We push each other and we are pretty competitive. Every time we are in the gym if he is putting on an extra 5kg to lift then I’m doing it with him.
“There is always some friendly competition, which keeps you sane.”
Wright said the fitness side of things was easy to tick off but he had put a big focus on ensuring his skills kept up to scratch while there were no games being played, kicking an endless number of balls down at Burleigh Bombers with Miller.
“I’m kicking three times a week still,” Wright said. “We’re trying to kick as much as we would normally in training, which is good because I’m enjoying just kicking the footy with a mate at the park.
“It takes you back to grassroots footy a bit.
“The biggest thing is skills because you can always run and do gym stuff, everyone has gear at home so that will get ticked off, so it’s about making sure we are still kicking. Once we get back to training that is when you will get injured, if you haven’t been kicking.
“We have been doing different types of kicks to stay inventive, like calling out golf club numbers and you have to emulate the flight of the ball and things like that.”
WE PUSH EACH OTHER AND WE ARE PRETTY COMPETITIVE … THERE IS ALWAYS SOME FRIENDLY COMPETITION. PETER WRIGHT