THE holiday is over for the Sydney Swans, with the playing group back on the track at Lakeside Oval this morning, following a two-week break over the Christmas and New Year period.
Emerging from the recovery group and into full training for the first time this pre-season, big man Sam Reid got a nasty surprise when he laced up his boots this morning.
While the 23-year-old is pleased to be back on the training track after overcoming a minor knee injury, he soon found out that he’d be running the dreaded three kilometre time trial.
It was a test Reid relished and he now has his sights set on a big 2015.
“It was my first session for the year and I got a nice little surprise this morning when I rocked up and realised that I had to do the three k-er,” Reid said after training.
“I wasn’t aware until I got here, but I got through that and the entire skills session which was a good start.”
After injuring his knee late last season, Reid underwent arthroscopic surgery after the Grand Final and spent the first few months of pre-season doing everything he could to get it right.
The versatile tall says he’s now feeling back to full strength and is enjoying being back out on the track with the team.
“The knee feels really good, it’s come along well over the break,” he said.
“I did a bit of extra training over the Christmas break, and hung around here, so I’ve been doing everything I can and it’s coming along well.
“It’s nice to get a bit of fresh air and get out of the altitude room down in the dungeon where there are no windows or not much to look at, so to get off the bike, my bum’s loving it, but to be able to run around again with the boys and kick a footy is a good feeling.”
While this morning’s session was Reid’s first with the team this pre-season, he has been able to keep a close eye on his teammates.
“Everyone’s come back in great shape,” Reid said.
“Even from the first of December a month ago, everyone returned in really good shape.
“There’s a bit of fire in the belly so everyone’s really ready to go and they’ve been training really well and everyone’s in good nick.”
Reid’s height, speed and strength were used to great effect for the team last year as he was able to play a variety of roles.
Reid is expecting to play a similar role in 2015 and is hoping an uninterrupted run on the track will lead to big things this season.
“I’ll probably be swung around a little bit again depending on what our needs are but I’m looking to improve on last year and have a bit more impact offensively. I wasn’t overly pleased with my year so I’m looking to have a big pre-season and be ready to go this year.”
