Fremantle superstar Nat Fyfe has revealed a trip to India helped him overcome his injury issues and regain confidence in his body.
Fyfe wound back the clock on Saturday night with 37 disposals, seven clearances and one goal in his team’s 24-point win over the Western Bulldogs.
It marked his highest possession count since the two-time Brownlow medallist tallied 37 disposals against Port Adelaide in round 13, 2019.
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Before Saturday night, Fyfe hadn’t even cracked the 30-possession barrier since 2021, but his form this year is growing by the week and has been a huge shining light for Fremantle.
Fyfe entered the 2024 campaign off the back of four injury-plagued seasons, but he is finally fit and reaping the rewards of an extended run without setbacks.
After the match, Fyfe told Channel 7 he struggled to regain his confidence until he went to India last October.
“I lost a lot of confidence. Felt like I was trying absolutely everything that we could … Western medicine got to the end of that,” he said. “So I started to lock at things differently with my body.
“Wend to India, did a bunch of things over there and I found a few people here in Perth, helping me with my healing journey and helping me to get more confidence with my body, which helps my craft.”
When asked by Channel 7’s Luke Darcy about what sort of treatments he had in India, Fyfe was cagey but said one exercise involved
“I can’t give too much away, but I walked into a physio practice to have a look at my foot.
“I said ‘I have a sore foot’. The lady said ‘lift your right arm’, I said ‘that’s a bit weird’.
“I started to understand how the body’s completely connected. How trauma and pain can get trapped and stored in your body.
“The difference between injury and pain and how they are different things.
“On the back of that, it just revolutionised the way I looked at my body.”
Now 32, Fyfe is contracted until end of next year but isn’t looking too far ahead.
“I have the rest of the year to get through. I’m enjoying being back in the team and in some sort of form with confidence in my body. I will literally just take it a couple of months at a time and see where we wind up,” he said.
Fremantle coach Justin Longmuir was full of praise for Fyfe’s efforts, which included a 15-possession first quarter.
“We’ve seen snippets of it and quarters of it,” Longmuir said.
“We probably haven’t seen a sustained game like what he produced against the Bulldogs from him since he got back.
“But his body of work since day one of pre-season has been phenomenal, and I’ve spoken a lot about that work and how it set him up for the season.
“His ability to bring his teammates into the game and make his possessions contribute to us hitting the scoreboard was really, really good.
“It’s good to see him get reward for all the persistence and all the effort.
“He just wants to be a part of a successful team. And he’s doing everything he can to be able to help build a successful team.”
– With AAP
