Tom Liberatore doesn’t see any extra pressure on the Western Bulldogs as they attempt to defend the AFL premiership.
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Bulldogs’ premiership stars, Jake Stringer, Lachie Hunter, Josh Dunkley and Liberatore were among a group of nine players visiting hundreds of local students in Corowa as part of the AFL Community Camp on Monday.
“It’s been good to come out here and go back to the level where you once enjoyed your footy,” Liberatore said.
“We’ve got a shorter pre-season this year, which is always nice, and I’m looking forward to the first game this weekend.
“We’ll just take it all in our stride, similar to how we approached the finals last year, and look forward to timing our run and come good for round one.”
One of modern football’s biggest characters, Liberatore reflected on how he was able to overcome a challenging 2016 on the injury front before going on to achieve ultimate success.
“It’s all around your personal resilience and how much you want it and building determination around your teammates,” Liberatore said.
“I think that’s the biggest thing for me and a team like us. We get around each other the most and the team chemistry we have allows you to pull through individually.
“If you stick with your teammates and hang tough, you’ll be right.”
Liberatore found himself on a rapidly-growing Bulldogs’ injury list at the end of last season, but was uplifted by the positive energy around the playing group.
“We had about six people in rehab at the same time, Jacko (Jackson) Macrae, Roughy (Jordan Roughhead) and a few others. We all had that belief we’d come back for the first final,” he said.
The Bulldogs take on Melbourne in their first hit-out of the pre-season at Whitten Oval on Saturday.
It’s all around your personal resilience and how much you want it.
- Tom Liberatore