By Marcus Uhe
Over the Christmas period, the News’ sports team will be re-sharing some of the most popular stories from over the course of 2024.
Thank you for supporting our newspapers over the course of the year. We hope you enjoy the selection and have a wonderful holiday period, however you choose to celebrate.
Trent Papworth felt the excruciating pop in his lower leg late in the second quarter of Narre Warren’s second semi-final against Woori Yallock two weeks ago and knew exactly what it meant.
The first-year co-captain had recovered from two calf injuries in his left leg this season that saw him miss 10 games but finally regained his fitness late in the year to lead his side into September football.
In the shadows of half time, disaster struck, as he felt the calf in his right leg tear.
Not only was the muscle ripped, but so were his chances of lining up in any further finals, with his coach, Steven Kidd acknowledging the horrendous news straight after the win in his post-game team address.
But Papworth, desperate to get back to the field and lead his men to premiership glory, wasn’t going to let the most important weeks of his season be snatched from under him just yet.
“Two weeks ago I went and got a scan and learned that I had a torn calf, then I had nothing to lose,” he said after lifting the premiership cup on Saturday.
“I wasn’t going to play, so I thought I may as well try everything I can.
“I heard a few people that had been down to see this bloke and they got up, so it’s done the job.”
The ‘bloke’ in question goes by the auspicious moniker of ‘Dr Death’, but Papworth needed the mysterious practitioner to bring his prospects of taking the field back to life.
A massage therapist with endorsements from the likes of Richmond champion Dustin Martin and with a reputation for healing soft tissue and muscle issues, Papworth made multiple drips in the following fortnight to his clinic on the Mornington Peninsula, and to Traralgon to utilise a hyperbaric chamber, all in a bid to prove his fitness and shoot for a third flag in black and white.
“I don’t know if (the chamber) did anything, but mentally it got me up, and we got through,” he said.
“It was a bit of time and money but it was all worth it.”
Then came the fitness test.
Kidd made it clear to the key defender that he would need to train on both Tuesday and Thursday night, and pass a fitness test in order to be considered for selection.
The intervening Wednesday night, however, was far from a night off.
Under the lights at Kalora Park and with a teammate’s assistance, Papworth was put through his paces with an intense session that was viewed as make or break.
“Riley Siwes came up and I put the jumping bag on the back,” Kidd said.
“He (Papworth) jumped up on the bag 20 times, then we put him on the ground and he had to get up, round around cones and take a mark.
“We pushed him on Wednesday night and he said ‘is that my fitness test?’ and I said ‘no, you’ve got to do another one tomorrow night.’
“He had to get through training on Thursday night and then we did a similar thing on Thursday night.
“I think he worked harder than he ever has in preseason, but we thought, if he’s gonna go, it’s gotta go now.
“We pushed him really hard, and we kept coming up and asking him ‘how does it feel?’ and he said it was fine.
“Once we got through Thursday, he’s an honest guy and I said ‘you’re going to have to make the call yourself now, we’re backing you in,’ and he messaged me on Friday night and said ‘I’m good.’”
While acknowledging the risk in selecting him, Kidd believes his ability to get himself ready to play under such adverse circumstances galvanised the group, and allowed the backline to orchestrate the matchups they wanted against the diverse and explosive Wandin forward line.
“He’s a heart and soul type player,” Kidd said of Papworth.
“We wanted to keep Zietsman high.
“Trent can play on either (Clint) Johnson or (Charlie) Wood, Zietsman can play high on (Patrick) Hodgett.
“When he came in, we were pretty pleased he was ready to go.”
Playing with a compression garment on the tender leg, Papworth played as the deepest defender and made a number of critical interceptions as Wandin kicked its lowest score of 2024 on the biggest stage.
The impact of his commitment wasn’t lost on Tom Toner, who said his captain’s efforts will be one of the defining memories of the premiership success.
“I reckon we would have spent $1000 on rehab, hyperbaric chambers, Dr Death to get him sorted,” Toner said.
“He did it all and that goes to show how much he actually cared.”
With previous skipper Jake Richardson embarking on an overseas venture in 2024, the captaincy vacancy was filled by Papworth and Zietsman, two experienced defenders with the respect of their peers and opponents.
When the departures lounge at Narre Warren was getting uncomfortably full after the 2023 season, Papworth was one of the returning senior players that made a stand, and was acknowledged with the co-captaincy as a result.
Having played his juniors at Fountain Gate and Narre North Foxes and all but one senior season at Narre Warren, the regret of the lone year away from the nest meant he had no hesitation in recommitting.
As he hobbled around gingerly in the aftermath of the grand final win, the enormity of the moment was yet to sink in.
“If you had have told me at the start of the year that this is where we would have been, I would not have believed you,” he acknowledged.
“I think a lot of people wrote us off with who we’ve had out in the past couple of years, but it’s great that blokes have stood up from nowhere and come from the 19s and twos.
“Narre Warren has never really been a club that recruits blokes from the outside, so that’s one of the best things and what I love about it.
“It’s my club; I left once and I’ll never do it again.”
As for his calf?
“The body held up alright, but late in the last quarter I just started cramping up a little bit, probably through lack of training and fitness throughout the year.
“I’m not great, but I’m sure I’ll be done for the next couple of days, so I’ll be right.”
