Lucas Anderson says he’s “been blown away” by the support he’s received since suffering a season-ending knee injury in Torquay’s Round 4 win over Geelong Amateur.
A scan earlier this week confirmed the reigning BFNL leading goalkicker’s worst fears of a torn anterior cruciate ligament following an incident in the second quarter of the clash at KFC Oval.
Fellow ex-St Joseph’s premiership player Jordan Keras, who now coaches Anglesea and works as a physiotherapist, arranged for Anderson’s knee to be scanned within 48 hours.
Former Joeys coach Heath Jamieson – now at Queenscliff – used his contacts to arrange for the star forward to meet with surgeon Hayden Morris tomorrow (Friday).
“Something I’m very proud of is having mates like ‘Jamo’, and Jordy Keras was one of the first to call me and sort me out with an MRI,” Anderson told K rock Football.
“It’s pretty amazing the league we’re playing in and how close everyone is.”
In an emotional week for last year’s Ash Medal runner-up, he says telling son Alby that he wouldn’t be playing footy for a while was the toughest.
However, that was quickly put into perspective by Anderson’s youngest son Odie’s health battles.
“Alby’s four, and he’s just footy, footy, footy; it was quite emotional telling him that Dad’s not going to play footy for a while, and he can’t really process that,” Anderson said.
“Even going to training this (Thursday) morning, he was a bit confused as to why I was going. It just brings you back down to earth.
“I’m a realist. Our youngest kid spent a bit of time in the Royal Children’s (Hospital), so a knee puts it into perspective quicksmart for me.
“What kids go through down there, this is so minor compared to those sort of things.”
Anderson is no stranger to ruptured anterior cruciate ligaments, having suffered the same injury on his other knee when playing for Wendouree in the Ballarat league in 2015.
“It was an innocuous lead-out and duck-back as the ball went over my head,” he said of this incident.
“It was that typical feeling of your knee collapsing and feeling a pop. It did bring a lot of memories back from my first one.
“I knew straight away, even though the initial feeling from the physios was that I might have got away with it.
“But, deep down, I knew it was pretty severe, unfortunately.”
After initially considering calling time on his impressive career that was good enough to earn VFL games at Bendigo and North Ballarat, Anderson is determined to play in 2025.
Before that, the 32-year-old will use the remainder of this year to develop his coaching alongside Tigers mentor Dom Gleeson, as three-time Ash medallist James Darke has done since doing his knee in mid-2023.
“I do see myself going down that path in the future,” Anderson said. “I haven’t sat down with Dom yet to see what that looks like.
But, getting into Dom’s mind away from a player-coach relationship and seeing how his brain works away from the playing group is something I’m definitely excited for.”
X: @krockfootball
