RICHMOND superstar Dustin Martin is set to be let off the leash for the first time since suffering a season-ending kidney injury against Brisbane last July.
The Brownlow Medal winner missed the final five games of 2021 after he spent a week in a Gold Coast hospital and lost nearly 15 kilograms following a heavy collision with Lions midfielder Mitch Robinson.
AFL.com.au understands Martin has been cleared to return to full contact training after a steady build-up across the first two months of the pre-season.
Martin has spent plenty of time running so far this summer and completed 70 per cent of the skills sessions in the past few weeks, copping a bump here and there in full ground drills and match simulation as part of his build to this point.
The 30-year-old has regained the strength he lost following the most serious injury of his career, which forced him to not only avoid any contact for three months, but also limited his physical exertion and required him to be meticulous with the food he consumed to help his immune system recover.
Smooth is the word being attached to Martin's recovery. He has had the time to progress gradually since he was discharged from hospital six months ago and now there is a feeling inside the Swinburne Centre that the injury may help extend his career given the reset it has forced him to take with his body.
The four-time All-Australian has already played 260 games – only playing fewer than 20 games for the first time in 2021, when he still managed 16 appearances. Only four Tigers have reached 300 games, with Kevin Bartlett the games record holder (403 games), ahead of Jack Dyer (311), Jack Riewoldt (305) and Francis Bourke (300).
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After winning the 2017, 2019 and 2020 premierships, the Tigers found themselves in somewhat unchartered territory late last year when they failed to make the finals for the first time since 2016.
But one benefit of missing out on an extra month of the season has been adding an extra month to the pre-season program, with plenty of players – young and old – benefiting from extra conditioning and skill development, which wasn't possible 12 months ago when the Tigers returned for pre-season in January after winning the 2020 Toyota AFL Grand Final in late October.
Richmond has been hit with a massive workload since returning from the Christmas break, with the high performance department at Punt Road testing the limits of the playing list during a brutal three-week block to start 2022.
The increase in intensity and workload was a contributing factor in Tom Lynch's minor hamstring strain, but it is a risk the club was willing to take at this time of year as it completes a training program that many inside the club hope will not only see it return to September, but contend in 2022.
Lynch had completed the entire pre-season program up until that setback and is expected to return to full training ahead of the pre-season practice matches against Geelong and Hawthorn.
Dion Prestia, another former Sun, has produced his most comprehensive pre-season since moving to Tigerland at the end of 2016, with those inside the football department thrilled with his output following an injury-interrupted period for the midfielder.
Prestia has been riddled by soft-tissue issues during his time at Richmond, with the 29-year-old managing only nine games in 2021 after just nine the year before.
But after banking a solid training block in October and November ahead of Richmond's official return to training, Prestia has strung together an eye-catching December and January to lay the foundations for a big season.
Richmond is expected to now dedicate more time on match simulation ahead of next month's practice match against Geelong and the Tigers' AAMI Community Series game against Hawthorn on March 5.
