HE ENDURED 630 days out of AFL action after another knee reconstruction and Collingwood backman Matthew Scharenberg was thrilled to return to the senior side.
Scharenberg, 21, played the fifth game of his career in the 45-point win against the Brisbane Lions on Sunday at the MCG and picked up 16 disposals.
He tore his right ACL at training in November 2015, after having suffered the same injury to his left knee the previous year.
Coach Nathan Buckley made the sixth person drafted in 2013 wait for his opportunity. Scharenberg racked up 41 disposals in the VFL last week, after consecutive weeks of 34 touches.
"Driving into the game this morning, you couldn't help but think everything you've been through injury-wise and how long it's taken to get back to this day," Scharenberg said after the game.
Having suffered injury troubles made the South Australian appreciate what he had.
"To be honest, it was just good to be playing. Every player would like to be playing AFL footy instead of VFL, but for me, having spent the time out that I have, it was just so good to be back out there playing games and playing good footy," he said.
Retirement was never considered but Scharenberg knew 2016 would be a difficult year.
"Especially after the second knee I did, having to go through the whole process again (was tough) because I knew what I was in for. It's a pretty long road, 12 months out," he said.
He was injured both times in similar ways. The first was in the VFL after a sudden change of direction, but the second happened at training.
The mental impact of recovering from the serious injury was unexpected for Scharenberg.
"It has surprised me how much that side of things does play on your mind, the mental side of coming back from a knee," he said.
"But I think that's why being able to do a full pre-season was so good for me. I was able to use that as a confidence builder, so in the season now, I'm fully confident and know that I've put in all the work.
"Getting over a few of those mental hurdles were pretty big."
Scharenberg's composure was a highlight for Buckley.
"He got better as the game went on. That's going to happen – it's been over 600 days since his last AFL game and he's still only played a handful," Buckley said after the match.
"We all travel different journeys to get our opportunities and he's travelled a pretty rocky road to get to this point, but that doesn't guarantee that it's going to go smoothly from this point on, so you take every opportunity you can.
"Shaz's worked really hard so we'd love to see him continue to put his best foot forward and if he can add to our backline mix, that would be good. I thought he showed great composure in that second half in particular."
