MELBOURNE midfielder Lily Mithen is still two weeks away from returning to footy, but has started running in her recovery from ankle surgery.
The lively Demon suffered an ankle syndesmosis injury in a pre-season match against Collingwood when her foot got caught under a Bri Davey tackle.
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Mithen spoke to the Credit to the Girls podcast about Melbourne's undefeated start to the season and some of the challenges she's faced on the sidelines.
"I've never missed a game I wanted to play in. So, leading into round one, mentally I was struggling with the fact I knew was going to have to sit on the sidelines and watch the girls do it," Mithen said.
"Also, just not being able to do what you love on a Saturday afternoon, that was a really hard bit, the unknown of how you're going to feel and how you're going to react when you're not able to do something you wanted.
"Then, I guess, not that it'll be a super long time (on the sidelines), but it is quite lonely when the squad's out on the track training and you're in the gym doing cardio and upper body weights."
In this episode…
Lily Mithen joins the show to discuss Melbourne's strong start to the year and how she's progressing in her return from an ankle injury. Later, host Lucy Watkin discusses the importance of pride round, rounding out with a look at round three.
Episode guide
1:10 – The good, bad, ugly and unique from round two of the 2020 NAB AFLW season
5:48 – Injured Melbourne midfielder Lily Mithen joins the show
10:03 – The generational shift in Melbourne's midfield
17:48 – Stories of GenW: Mithen takes us behind the scenes of the rehab process
20:02 – The mental challenges of spending time on the sidelines
21:55 – Quick hands
24:49 – Lucy speaks about the importance of Pride Round
27:27 – A look at round three