After two luckless years, David Mackay knows there are no guarantees in footy, but the promising midfielder is hoping a gruelling pre-season - in which he’s added 4kg to his light frame - can help him overcome the injury curse that has plagued the start of his AFL career.
Click the play button above to watch the full Channel Crow interview with David Mackay
Drafted by Adelaide with pick No.48 in the 2006 AFL Draft, Mackay’s first season at West Lakes was ruined by a chronic hamstring injury.
The polished ball carrier fought back to become a regular in the Crows team over the next two years, playing 39 games and adding another dimension to the side with his speed and line-breaking ability.
However, injuries struck the 23-year-old again in 2010, with ankle and groin complaints - the latter of which required post-season surgery - limiting him to 16 appearances.
He worked tirelessly in his rehabilitation from surgery to be fit for the Crows’ season-opener against Hawthorn last year only to suffer another injury, this time to his shoulder during the game.
He required another operation and didn’t return to the team until round 15.
Even then, a two-week knee strain robbed him of the chance to play out the rest of the season uninterrupted.
As part of the Club’s focus on strength training under new coach Brenton Sanderson, Mackay was issued the challenge of adding to his wiry 74kg frame over the summer.
A notoriously hard worker, Mackay responded to the five-weights-session-a-week program adding four kilograms of muscle mass and completing about 98 per cent of the pre-season.
“I hardly missed a session over the summer, so from that point of view it couldn’t have gone any better,” Mackay told afc.com.au.
“Hopefully, the strength training and work we’ve been able to do in the gym helps our durability.
“I know, personally, it’s something I’ve worked really hard on.
“I’ve now put on 10kg since I arrived at the Club.
“I was coming from a fair way back, so it was good to have that focus over the pre-season.
“I couldn’t be any better prepared, so hopefully I can transfer that to the footy field now.”
Identified by the Adelaide coaching staff as one of the most important players in the team’s structure, Mackay recorded the second-highest percentage of inside50ms that lead to a Crows goal last season.
He also ran hard defensively, averaging the second-most pressure acts at the Club.
A veteran of 63 games, Mackay has been included in the Crows ‘emerging leaders’ group for 2012.
“It’s really exciting to be part of that group,” Mackay said.
“There are lot of exciting young leaders at the Club and it’s great to see Rory Sloane and Patrick Dangerfield go into the senior leadership group.
“I’m certainly working on developing that (leadership) side of my game.”
D-Mac’s 2012 Toyota AFL Dream Team tip:
“Ricky Henderson. He’s looking pretty good at the moment. He’s a freak athletically and is really starting to find his feet. I wouldn’t be surprised if he has a really good year.”
