CRUNCH time has arrived for Brendan Fevola’s punting career.
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Fevola, who has been chasing a spot in the NFL since his AFL career was cut short in 2010, will soon be told whether he has a future in the sport.
The Yarrawonga superstar will fly to the US on Monday for a three-week training camp.
He has been working closely with former Geelong captain, turned punting convert, Ben Graham, in recent weeks to prepare for the trip.
“Basically I’m going over to find out whether this is for me, or not,” Fevola told The Border Mail.
“I’ll be training with Darren Bennett; he’s the guru over there.
“I’ll have some more expert training and they’ll let me know.”
Bennett, who played for West Coast and Melbourne before his punting career, is regarded as one of Australia’s best sporting converts.
He is considered an NFL great and was inducted into the San Diego Chargers’ Hall of Fame last year.
Fevola will be based in San Diego but hopes to travel to New Orleans for the Super Bowl on February 3.
The two-time Coleman medallist said his tilt at American football was genuine.
“I absolutely love it,” he said.
“I couldn’t have picked a better time to go over, either.”
But a possible US career isn’t the only sporting feat on his mind.
Fevola, who booted 110 goals for the Pigeons last year, is eagerly awaiting the start of the Ovens and Murray season.
“I can’t wait for it,” he said.
“Obviously we’re out to go back-to-back — the club hasn’t done it before — and now we’ve got ‘Petts’ (Kayne Pettifer) on board.”
Fevola dismissed concerns about the Pigeons’ forward line being overcrowded with the arrival of former AFL star Pettifer.
“He’ll be playing in the twos, anyway,” Fevola quipped.
“Seriously, though, it will be right. He’ll probably play a fair bit in the midfield, anyway; he’s in better nick at the moment than when he was playing AFL.”
Fevola continues to battle soreness in his left knee he injured in the final round of the season last year but said it “would be fine” by the start of the season.
Fevola will play in Darwin on Saturday alongside reigning Did Simpson medallist Craig Ednie.
Meanwhile, Fevola welcomed North Albury’s decision to recruit sacked St Kilda star Jason Gram.
“Obviously if you have more better players playing in the league then it’s a better league,” he said.
Gram has also been working on his punting with Graham.
Fevola and Gram are scheduled to meet early in the O and M season but Fevola remains unsure whether he’ll be available for the Pigeons’ second round clash with the Hoppers at Bunton Park.