CONSIDER the last two years for Hawthorn captain Jarryd Roughead.
In order, he's had significant knee surgery, been through groundbreaking treatment for skin cancer, witnessed sweeping changes at his AFL club, taken over as skipper and made a successful football comeback from his illness.
Last month, Roughead and his wife Sarah became parents for the first time with the arrival of Pippa.
"You don't wish that to happen to anyone," Roughead said of going through his melanoma scare.
"But it's gone quick, because two years ago I'm having knee surgery for a PCL and then we're standing here now with all that's gone on.
"It's not bad - a good story."
It emerged this week that the immunotherapy treatment Roughead went through to treat his cancer continued to affect him once he returned to the AFL.
Roughead had some nerve damage in his feet and it affected his kicking.
Remarkably, he still played every game last season and topped the club goalkicking with 38.
He has seen the team change radically, with his great friend Jordan Lewis going to Melbourne and fellow four-time premiership star Sam Mitchell moving to West Coast.
Most recently, Luke Hodge initially retired and now has gone to Brisbane.
The Hawks dropped out of the finals last season for the first time since 2009, confirming the end of their three-peat premiership era.
Like everyone else, Roughead is unsure what this season holds for the Hawks and said it is crucial they start better than last year's disastrous 1-6 return.
"Obviously we want a better start than last year," he said
"But we have the first four at the MCG, we love playing there and they're going to be huge games."
Roughead is particularly keen to see how Jarman Impey, recruited from Port Adelaide, develops in their attack alongside veterans such as Jack Gunston, Cyril Rioli, Luke Breust and Paul Puopolo.
"We know how each other plays and then you throw Impey in there, it's a pretty exciting forward line," Roughead said.
"When he (Impey) played us, he sat on the heads of a few blokes and kicked a few goals."
More immediately, Roughead is revelling in new parenthood.
Asked what is the biggest challenge, he said: "understanding what she wants at what time, because it's similar to coaches - you probably don't understand them at times, do you?"
That begged the obvious question, who is harder to understand: Pippa or Alastair Clarkson?
"This is not a poll ... I'm not going to take that one," Roughead said.
Meanwhile, the club announced its future home in Dingley Village will be named the Kennedy Community Centre in honour of Hawthorn legend, John Kennedy Snr.
