The injury-riddled Tom Trbojevic had high hopes moments before departing for the United States to see the mastermind behind Latrell Mitchell’s scintillating resurgence, saying he looked forward to returning “a new man”.
Trbojevic on Saturday spoke to reporters at Sydney Airport before leaving to see the Philadelphia-based Bill Knowles, who put Mitchell on the path to shining in the NRL and World Cup over the back half of 2022.
After suffering the latest in a long string of hamstring injuries in December, Trbojevic is set to undergo 20 rehabilitation sessions with Knowles in two weeks.
READ MORE: Stosur drops massive career announcement
READ MORE: Teary Tomljanovic’s heartbreak at AO exit
READ MORE: Nadal hits out at ‘worse quality’ Aus Open ball
“He’s one of the experts in this field; I’ve got a lot of confidence,” Trbojevic said.
“You hope to get a lot out of it, so you can come back, be confident in yourself and your body, that you’re doing everything you can to stay on the park and play good footy.”
Trbojevic has managed only 44 NRL games in the last four seasons, including seven in 2022.
Last year’s injury woes, and the infamous pride jersey saga, were behind Manly’s horrendous finish to the season and the demise of Des Hasler as head coach.
“I was obviously a little bit down,” Trbojevic said of December’s injury blow.
“It wasn’t what you wanted.
“I was really enjoying training back in pre-season.
“Wasn’t good, but I’ve moved on from that, and now I’m in the process of getting myself right and getting back to playing footy.
“Being down’s only going to get you so far.”
In the first week of the year, Ryan Papenyhuyzen headed to the US to see Knowles about his horrible knee injury, so there’s a high chance Trbojevic will cross paths with the Melbourne Storm speedster during his trip.
“I think a lot of it’s to do with reconditioning your body and rewiring it to move better, to put less stress on your (hamstrings) and other areas of your body,” Trbojevic said.
“I think in the short term it’s about definitely moving better, but hopefully that has a long-term effect and can show in the park for however long.”
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!
The backstories and controversies that have ignited feuds involving athletes
#Tom #Trbojevic #USA #injury #trip #Latrell #Mitchell #Manly #Sea #Eagles