Each and every week during the football season, thousands of players undertake grueling training and rehabilitation regimes in order to get themselves fit and ready for game-day. There are also team meetings to attend, weights to push and painstaking recovery protocols to adhere to.

Inevitably at some stage during their careers, players will find that the fight to get onto the field can come at a high cost, with little reward.

It’s a familiar scenario for North Melbourne rookie Matthew Scott.

Playing for Werribee in the VFL, the 18 year-old didn’t even get through the first half of the game against Coburg on Saturday.

Remarkably, Scott was left unconscious after a heavy hit by an opposition player for the second consecutive week.

Those who follow Werribee will try and say that it’s the third time he has been knocked out this year, but don’t try and tell that to Scott.

“No, I’ve only been knocked out twice…the other time was just a slight concussion and I played the rest of that game,” Scott told kangaroos.com.au.

“I had never been knocked out before this year.”

Picked up in last year’s rookie draft, Scott’s development has been somewhat overshadowed by fellow rookie Majak Daw. Most of the attention has been on the Sudanese-born rookie leaving Scott to fly under the radar. However, several promising performances in the VFL reserves saw him quickly promoted into the senior side.

But just when he was beginning to find his feet at the higher level, this string of consecutive knock-outs has understandably taken the wind out of his sails.
“I don’t think I’ve been doing anything wrong...well, I hope I haven’t. I just think it comes down to luck and I haven’t had much of that lately.

“I’ve had a look back at last week’s incident and there was nothing I could have done to prevent the bump from happening. I didn’t see it coming and it was off the ball.

“In saying that, there wasn’t much the opposition player could have done either…I was sort of pushed into his path and he ran straight through me,” Scott recalls.

Known as a hard in-and-under midfielder, Scott has vowed to continue playing his style and refuses to change his ways despite the possible consequences.

“I really think that you risk getting yourself in trouble if you hesitate…I think you’re more chance to get injured if you pause and think about it - as opposed to just putting your head over the ball and going in and getting it.”

Although he plays tough and talks just as tough, Scott is conscious of the impact his injuries have had on his family.

“Mum and Dad were there to watch me play the last two weeks, so they saw me get knocked out twice…one after the other. No parent wants to see their child get carried off the ground on a stretcher but I suppose they know it’s just part of the game.”

And speaking of stretchers, it seems Scott isn’t that keen on them.

“The medical staff forced me onto the stretcher last week…I reckon I could have got up and walked off the ground but they wanted to play it safe I suppose.”

Scott will train on Thursday and do it all again on Saturday when the Tigers take on Casey in Werribee at 2.45pm.