The Sydney Swans had a number of players requiring surgery following the 2008 season but the majority of the playing list should be back to full training within the next two weeks.
A total of nine players went under the knife, including Tadhg Kennelly who had both groin and shoulder operations, Craig Bolton and Adam Goodes groin surgery and Michael O’Loughlin who had ankle surgery.
“We had a few more operations at the end of last year so there are probably a few players that have had a delayed start with their pre-season but we expect most of them by the end of this week to be back in almost the full training program,” Pre-season head coach John Longmire said.
“A lot had completed their rehab before Christmas and should be maybe ticking the final boxes this week and into next week.
“A few of them are already doing some skills now so we expect next week they will almost be doing a full session.”
O’Loughlin will take more time than his rehab teammates to resume full training. After suffering an ankle injury in the Round 16 game against Carlton last year, it has been a slow process for the forward.
“Mick is still taking some time but we're not rushing him,” Longmire added.
“He had a big operation and fortunately he's a pretty good touch player and he had a good pre-season last year so he's got a bit of training under his belt.
“He's still a number of weeks away, he's just now getting moving with his running.
“We expect him to just ease into it and he's probably the last of the group into the program.”