Lifeline for Henderson as rookie listing lands him 13th season

GEELONG defender Lachie Henderson is confident he will hit the ground running back at the Cats after receiving a career lifeline yesterday.

The veteran defender will remain on an AFL list after Geelong used its final selection in the rookie draft to grant him a 13th season.

Henderson flew into Melbourne at 5.30am yesterday after a three-week holiday in the USA and Europe and will front up to Cats training in good condition on Monday after maintaining his fitness.

The 29-year-old, who was initially delisted last month, had been in discussion with Geelong about his future since the middle of the year.

But he said he was unsure about his future in the game as he was heading home from overseas.

“The last couple of months I have been speaking to the club and we have had open dialogue the whole time about what potentially could happen,” Henderson said.

He said getting rookie-listed was always on the cards. “But there was nothing promised or 100 per cent and I was fine with that. We went through it all the right way and now this is where we are at.

“I have been doing a fair bit of training, so I am not walking in out of my depth and after 12 years of doing it I think my body will pick it all up again pretty quickly.”

In Geelong’s two other rookie selections yesterday, the Cats followed through on their commitment to re-selecting Oscar Brownless.

Geelong had planned to take ruckman Ryan Abbott, but when he was signed by St Kilda as a delisted free agent, it freed a spot on the rookie list for Geelong to use on Henderson.

The only fresh face for Geelong was Glenelg forward Brad Close, who was taken with the Cats’ first selection yesterday.

Close, 21, was part of Glenelg’s premiership side and, at 181cm and 68kg, appealed to the Cats with his running and tackling ability.

Henderson has played 171 games and, despite enduring a frustrating past two years, said he was confident his body could still stand the rigours of AFL football.

“The body is good, it has been a really frustrating couple of years with injuries but the knee is feeling really good,” he said. “Last year I had injuries like plantar fascia and a groin, which was unlucky, but the knee is feeling really good and I am just ready to go and hoping to get through a nice preseason, which sets you up better than anything for the season ahead.

“I think that is the key and I have played for a few years now but I am still pretty young, so the key is to get the body right and that is what I will be aiming to do and making sure I am ready for March and April.”