The’massive’ month that gave the lifelong Bulldog a second opportunity
Nick Coffield is hoping a move to the team he supported as a child will revitalize his career after a terrible run at St Kilda.
In 2016, NICK Coffield was present. He was at Giants Stadium, having driven nine hours to Sydney with his father to watch one of the most well-known preliminary finals in modern history. And that September, he attended two historic games at the MCG: the semi-final victory over Hawthorn and the historic premiership victory against Sydney, which ended a two-week drought.
Though he was raised in Melbourne’s northern suburbs as an ardent Western Bulldogs fan, Coffield’s intellect, not his emotions, guided him to the Whitten Oval during the October trade period.
The final round of the 2021 season was the last time the 2017 No. 8 pick participated in AFL competition. He suffered a hamstring tear and recurring calf strains after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament in February 2022 during a match simulation at a pre-season camp in Ballarat. His career had begun to wither on the vine in 2020, when he finished fifth in the Trevor Barker Award, but it had been derailed by injuries.
It wasn’t until late July of this year that Coffield made his way back to the VFL, but he quickly adjusted and played four games for Sandringham to gain some confidence for himself and prospective suitors hoping to entice the defender away from RSEA Park.
According to Coffield, “I think I just needed a fresh start,” AFL.com.au said. “It goes without saying that I have had a difficult few years due to knee injuries, hammy issues, and more recently, a good deal of calf issues.
“I believed that all I needed to maximize my potential was a change of scenery. Here’s to hoping I can bring in a little more opportunity and luck. As soon as we spoke, The Dogs made me feel truly wanted throughout the entire process. Being a Melbourne team and not too far away really appealed to me.”
At the end of the season, Coffield met with Luke Beveridge at his bayside home to discuss a move that turned out to be much more complicated than anyone had anticipated. All told, his trade to the Dogs involved two players (Paddy Dow and Chesterfield), nine draft picks, four clubs (Essendon and Carlton), and two days after it appeared to be finalized.
“When I first spoke with (Beveridge) shortly after the season ended, he acknowledged that I hadn’t played in a few years, but they still thought I had the best footy ahead of me. When you’re in rehab, you can question (that) fairly frequently, Coffield stated.
“It was encouraging to hear that they still believed in me and supported my ability to play when I’m well. They gave me a lot of confidence that I could join the team and be useful.”
In his VFL debut against Collingwood at the end of July, Coffield recorded 28 disposals and followed it up with impressive performances against Box Hill, the Northern Bullants, and Williamstown, following exactly 700 days without a game at any level. In order to persuade the club that the defender was past the problems that had destroyed two years of his career, Bulldogs list manager Sam Power or a member of his recruiting team watched each of those four games.
“I had a really busy month. When your knee keeps you out of commission for an entire year, you naturally have high hopes for the next year. However, when things don’t go your way in terms of soft tissue, you begin to question your ability to improve,” he remarked.
“I think it was a good idea for me to concentrate on playing VFL towards the end of the season in order to gain some experience and show teams like the Dogs that I am still healthy and fit. That was one of the reasons I wanted to return when I did.
“I felt more confident going into this off-season in good health and fitness. The September to December period is essential, in my opinion, and something my body hasn’t had in the previous two years.”
For the Northern Knights product, the past few years have been quite arduous. While he was stuck putting his body back together, he had to watch other top-10 picks from his draft, like Andy Brayshaw, Luke Davies-Uniacke, and Aaron Naughton, become competitors.
Coffield has been limited to 52 games, while eight other first-round selections from 2017 have reached 100 games. While Tim Kelly (124), Brody Mihocek (126) and Bayley Fritsch (126 games) have all made up for lost time, Coffield has been left to wonder if he will ever get his body right.
Coffield learned how to fight the doubt that followed him while he was out of action by spending a lot of time with sports psychologist Dr. Ben Robbins, who relocated from St. Kilda to Essendon in the off-season to reunite with Brad Scott as head of psychology and wellbeing.
It’s been extremely difficult, particularly when you watch all of your friends play every week. It is difficult to be around the club and bring a positive attitude when you are lacking something. There have been difficult times when you wondered if you would ever get back. And will you still be good when you return? The game moves extremely quickly, and new players are constantly joining,” he remarked.
“There has been a lot of self-doubt, but the Saints’ psychologists and mindfulness instructors, like Benny Robbins, deserve great praise. For me, he was fantastic. We talked a lot about perspective, both personally and as a football player, which occasionally forces you to think beyond your own box. You struggle, but there are always things within your control. I truly appreciate him and the work we did on perspectives.”
With his now-former teammates, Coffield spent the majority of the trade window in Byron Bay, patiently awaiting word from his manager, Adam Ramanauskas of TLA Worldwide.
He believed the deal was sealed when he returned home two days before the deadline. However, it wasn’t. Unexpectedly taking longer than anticipated, the intricate four-way trade wasn’t formally approved until hours before the deadline, on that last day, after 2 p.m.
But at a club he’s always loved, he finally gets the fresh start he’s been waiting for.
