West Coast premiership defender Liam Duggan admits a lack of motivation has been an issue for players during the AFL shutdown period as they train with no target date in sight.
The 23-year-old said he and his Eagles teammates were still “in the dark” on a possible date for a return to group training and the resumption of the 2020 season, which was put on hold last month after one round of matches.
In the meantime, he has been paired with star ruckman Nic Naitanui, whose presence during outdoor training sessions has been some sort of obstacle to Duggan’s attempts at social distancing.
“Training with Nic Nat’s been good (but) sometimes it feels like I’m at an open session with him,” Duggan said.
“He draws a crowd, that’s for sure, wherever we are.
“But it’s been going good and he’s running well, so it’s been good training with him and we get what we need to get in with our footy skills.”
West Coast coach Adam Simpson has voiced his concerns about players’ ability to stay motivated during the shutdown period, which has come on the back of a long pre-season campaign and one match to start 2020.
Duggan conceded training had become a grind at times.
“We do manage, but the motivation is something that is a challenge,” Duggan said.
“It’s kind of a day-to-day thing and something that we’re all dealing with at the moment.
“The motivation is there, definitely, but at times it wavers, which is natural, I think.
“But we’re all keen to get the season underway, so staying fit and ready is our job and that’s all we can do.”
Duggan was sidelined for six weeks with an ankle injury late last season and returned, only to be overlooked for selection in West Coast’s finals campaign.
After 86 games, including the 2018 grand final win over Collingwood, he had been hopeful of taking a big step forward this year on the back of a strong pre-season.
But the coronavirus shutdown has put those plans on hold.
“It was a little bit disappointing that I couldn’t continue that (pre-season) form, but that’s not to say that I can’t pick it up when we get back up and going,” Duggan said.
“That’s another challenge that we’ll face, form and all that sort of stuff, which is a little bit frustrating … but pretty small in the scheme of things.”
Duggan hurt a thumb during a pre-season match against Fremantle but played in the round one win over Melbourne and said the injury had been given time to heal in recent weeks.