1 00:00:07,133 --> 00:00:10,453 Speaker 1: You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Team podcast 2 00:00:10,573 --> 00:00:11,693 Speaker 1: from News Talks a'd be. 3 00:00:12,853 --> 00:00:16,413 Speaker 2: You know how, when you're young, you sort of can't 4 00:00:16,453 --> 00:00:19,493 Speaker 2: imagine a point in your life when you're living with 5 00:00:19,533 --> 00:00:25,053 Speaker 2: physical limitations, you know, Like, I mean, sure, maybe you're 6 00:00:25,053 --> 00:00:28,133 Speaker 2: not as strong as you'd like to be, maybe you're 7 00:00:28,133 --> 00:00:30,773 Speaker 2: not quite as quick or fit as some of your mates. 8 00:00:30,773 --> 00:00:33,893 Speaker 2: But for me, at least, the thought of a relatively 9 00:00:34,093 --> 00:00:39,573 Speaker 2: straightforward physical action being too difficult or too painful just 10 00:00:40,013 --> 00:00:43,333 Speaker 2: never cross my mind. You sort of, you know how, 11 00:00:43,373 --> 00:00:46,573 Speaker 2: when you're young, you sort of take health and dexterity 12 00:00:47,213 --> 00:00:51,333 Speaker 2: and mobility general kind of limberness. You just take it 13 00:00:51,333 --> 00:00:56,013 Speaker 2: for granted, right. I remember as a kid dad getting 14 00:00:56,053 --> 00:00:59,093 Speaker 2: home from his football games. He would limp through the 15 00:00:59,093 --> 00:01:01,893 Speaker 2: front door. He would strap ice packs to both of 16 00:01:01,893 --> 00:01:04,813 Speaker 2: his knees and kind of splay himself out on the couch, 17 00:01:05,293 --> 00:01:08,253 Speaker 2: still in his grubby kit. And when you're a kid, 18 00:01:08,373 --> 00:01:10,333 Speaker 2: you can see that your dad's in pain, right, you 19 00:01:10,373 --> 00:01:14,533 Speaker 2: can rationalize that, but you never pause to wonder if 20 00:01:14,573 --> 00:01:18,293 Speaker 2: that might happen to you one day too. I couldn't 21 00:01:18,293 --> 00:01:21,493 Speaker 2: get past this. It's kind of sharp pain in my 22 00:01:21,613 --> 00:01:25,013 Speaker 2: left hip, I thought at first that I'd pulled a muscle, 23 00:01:25,053 --> 00:01:27,253 Speaker 2: and I went to the physio for what was the 24 00:01:27,253 --> 00:01:30,693 Speaker 2: first time in my life, but a series of scans 25 00:01:30,813 --> 00:01:34,813 Speaker 2: moved me quickly up the food chain, physio to sports 26 00:01:34,813 --> 00:01:38,733 Speaker 2: doctor to surgeon. One of the specialists said I had 27 00:01:38,733 --> 00:01:41,413 Speaker 2: the hip of someone in their sixties and it was 28 00:01:41,453 --> 00:01:43,653 Speaker 2: probably only a matter of time before I'd have to 29 00:01:43,653 --> 00:01:46,173 Speaker 2: get a new one. In the meantime, the best advice 30 00:01:46,213 --> 00:01:51,413 Speaker 2: they could give me was don't do stuff that hurts. Truthfully, 31 00:01:51,853 --> 00:01:55,573 Speaker 2: I've found that harder than it sounds. Although I haven't 32 00:01:55,613 --> 00:01:57,733 Speaker 2: played a single game of squash in at least a 33 00:01:57,733 --> 00:02:01,293 Speaker 2: couple of years now, a weekly game of very average 34 00:02:01,293 --> 00:02:04,933 Speaker 2: social football has been the most consistent social activity in 35 00:02:04,933 --> 00:02:06,973 Speaker 2: my life. And you know what they say about men 36 00:02:07,013 --> 00:02:11,693 Speaker 2: and how men just have to be doing stuff together, Well, honestly, 37 00:02:11,733 --> 00:02:15,293 Speaker 2: guilty is charged. I don't want to just sit around 38 00:02:15,373 --> 00:02:18,693 Speaker 2: and talk about stuff, talk about my feelings. I want 39 00:02:18,693 --> 00:02:21,773 Speaker 2: to be kicking something. I want to be kicking a ball. 40 00:02:22,093 --> 00:02:25,893 Speaker 2: And I'm convinced there is something about physically competing, albeit 41 00:02:25,973 --> 00:02:28,853 Speaker 2: in a lowly social league, that does an awful lot 42 00:02:28,853 --> 00:02:33,133 Speaker 2: of good for the top few inches. What it doesn't 43 00:02:33,213 --> 00:02:37,333 Speaker 2: do is much good for my hip. I turn like 44 00:02:37,413 --> 00:02:41,413 Speaker 2: a waning container ship at the best of times, but 45 00:02:41,493 --> 00:02:44,893 Speaker 2: the short twitch reactions required in midfield have not been 46 00:02:44,973 --> 00:02:49,893 Speaker 2: aided by my swiftly decaying cartilage. I picture it rotting 47 00:02:49,933 --> 00:02:54,253 Speaker 2: away like a paper bag and a puddle. Halfway through 48 00:02:54,333 --> 00:02:59,133 Speaker 2: last year, I started proactively taking painkillers before and after games. 49 00:02:59,253 --> 00:03:03,373 Speaker 2: Sometimes I struggle to walk normally for days afterwards. And look, 50 00:03:03,413 --> 00:03:05,373 Speaker 2: I know this isn't good, right. I know that I 51 00:03:05,413 --> 00:03:11,253 Speaker 2: shouldn't play. I know rationally that constantly agitating and inflaming 52 00:03:11,293 --> 00:03:14,373 Speaker 2: the same injury is going to cause me more problems 53 00:03:14,373 --> 00:03:16,653 Speaker 2: down the track. And if sometime in the future I 54 00:03:16,693 --> 00:03:21,853 Speaker 2: can't tramp or ride my bike or sleep without feeling pain, 55 00:03:22,493 --> 00:03:27,053 Speaker 2: I'll be furious with myself. But I don't know. Quitting 56 00:03:27,093 --> 00:03:31,893 Speaker 2: football has felt like a threshold. I've never had an 57 00:03:31,933 --> 00:03:35,213 Speaker 2: injury that didn't improve in my life. I've never not 58 00:03:35,373 --> 00:03:39,653 Speaker 2: been able to play something before. And then last week 59 00:03:39,733 --> 00:03:43,373 Speaker 2: I faced a reckoning. I visited a primary school and 60 00:03:43,413 --> 00:03:45,413 Speaker 2: the kids encouraged me to sit with them on the 61 00:03:45,453 --> 00:03:47,533 Speaker 2: mat and pose for a photo. It was all like 62 00:03:47,613 --> 00:03:49,933 Speaker 2: totally innocent enough, and you know how these things go, 63 00:03:50,333 --> 00:03:53,413 Speaker 2: you're sort of crossing your legs and sitting on the mat. Well, 64 00:03:53,453 --> 00:03:55,653 Speaker 2: it's usually the kind of thing that you give zero 65 00:03:55,733 --> 00:03:58,653 Speaker 2: notice to. You don't think about it until one day 66 00:03:58,653 --> 00:04:02,973 Speaker 2: you can't do it. Honestly, it was agony. I kind 67 00:04:02,973 --> 00:04:05,973 Speaker 2: of folded myself down as best I could, and yet 68 00:04:05,973 --> 00:04:09,773 Speaker 2: in the I don't even get halfway to the ground. 69 00:04:10,133 --> 00:04:12,213 Speaker 2: My butt is on the ground, but my knees are 70 00:04:12,293 --> 00:04:14,733 Speaker 2: up at nipple height. I look like a capital X. 71 00:04:16,133 --> 00:04:18,253 Speaker 2: When I finished at the school, there was a text 72 00:04:18,253 --> 00:04:21,533 Speaker 2: waiting on my phone, who's in for football next season? 73 00:04:21,813 --> 00:04:25,253 Speaker 2: And most of the guys quickly replied, yep, ken yep, yep, yep, 74 00:04:25,333 --> 00:04:30,133 Speaker 2: I'm in two. When you're young, most of us don't 75 00:04:30,173 --> 00:04:34,853 Speaker 2: imagine a point in life living with physical limitations. We 76 00:04:34,973 --> 00:04:39,533 Speaker 2: never asked when Dad started wincing as he reached for 77 00:04:39,573 --> 00:04:44,613 Speaker 2: his shoelaces. We didn't question why Grandma shuffles so much. 78 00:04:45,653 --> 00:04:48,853 Speaker 2: And then one day it begins. One day it starts. 79 00:04:50,093 --> 00:04:51,693 Speaker 2: You have to start saying no. 80 00:04:52,773 --> 00:04:55,853 Speaker 1: For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame, listen live 81 00:04:55,973 --> 00:04:59,133 Speaker 1: to News Talks B from nine am Saturday, or follow 82 00:04:59,173 --> 00:05:00,773 Speaker 1: the podcast on iHeartRadio.