Rehab in the USA: Tracking star duo's injury returns

As one star fullback returned to his club this week following a fortnight in the USA with reconditioning specialist Bill Knowles, another hit the halfway mark in his own intensive program which he hopes will have him fit for the opening round of the Telstra Premiership. 

Storm flyer Ryan Papenhuyzen has re-joined teammates at the club’s annual pre-season camp in Victoria, while Sea Eagles custodian Tom Trbojevic is into the second half of his time in Philadelphia with Knowles, who last year helped Latrell Mitchell return to the field following a spate of hamstring issues.

While full of praise for the experience, Papenhuyzen remains unsure on the timeline for his return from the fractured kneecap which ended his season in Round 18 last year.

“The closest answer I can give is at some point this year,” Papenhuyzen told the Storm website in regards to his comeback.  

“We’ve got a pretty important six-week block coming up now to put everything in place that I learned at Knowles Athletic.

“I probably still won't have an answer after those six weeks. But I think at some point this year is probably an accurate answer.

I feel a lot more confident, a lot more positive about the way forward.

Ryan Papenhuyzen

“Still a lot of way to go before I am back where I need to be.”

The return for Trbojevic is likely more imminent, with an expected two-month recovery period for the Grade 2 hamstring strain he suffered at training in December.

But given his long history with hamstring issues, the focus for the Manly star is more on long-term durability.

“We have had some really involved discussions between Tom, myself and Bill. Even understanding Bill’s philosophy and where he is trying to take Tom… we really understand the big picture,” Sea Eagles Rehabilitation Physiotherapist Andrew Lowndes, who is with Trbojevic in Philadelphia, told the club website.

“It’s not hamstring centric; it’s very much athletically performing at your best focussed.

“What we are seeing out of Tom is just a more exciting expression of an athlete.”

While the focus is on the personal rehab of Papenhuyzen and Trbojevic, the wider playing group at both the Storm and Sea Eagles stand to benefit from the trips, with both organisations sending a member of their physiotherapy staff to the USA with their player. 

“I am taking notes in every session… [finding] practical examples and how we can implement it from a team perspective to benefit everyone, and how it can benefit Tom individually, and how we might change his program so he is firing as well back home as he is here,” Lowndes added.

Papenhuyzen said his time with Knowles had left him feeling “refreshed” with a new way of thinking, which he would be sharing with teammates.   

“I think just a different mindset around thinking about an injury or going through rehab. I think that's probably something that I can take back to the group," Papenhuyzen said. 

“I know Liam [the Storm’s assistant physio] learned a lot over there.

“I can sort of share my experience of how Bill taught and what sort of lessons you learn."