Joel Bennett admits he will probably be “bench-pressing a broomstick” when he begins to build up strength after recent back surgery.
The Corio star went under the knife last Monday to alleviate ongoing pain that was the result of an on-field incident in May 2024.
Bennett was crunched after backing into a pack late in a match against Inverleigh, leaving the 2023 Whitley medallist with three broken vertebrae.
The former Devils coach returned to the field last year, featuring in 12 matches, and made three appearances to open the 2026 season before stepping away from playing after spinal injections had failed to eradicate the discomfort.
The 29-year-old underwent surgery at Melbourne’s Alfred Hospital in a procedure lasting about three hours, with surgeons confident he will return to living a “pretty normal life”.
“The way they’ve explained it to me, they’ve sliced either side of the spine and then moved everything back and then sort of folded it to one side like a steak,” Bennett said.
“They were going in to remove one bone, but when they pulled all the muscle and tissue back, one of the other fractures had actually fallen out, which was a bit weird when they spoke about it.
“So they ended up removing that one and then doing a bit of work to get the troublesome one out. They’re pretty confident that they’ve been able to free it up.
“And even though I’m not moving too flash at the moment, I haven’t had any of the shooting pain, which was the one that was really giving me a lot of grief.
“I haven’t felt that since (the surgery). So that’s got to be a win there.”
Bennett, who returned home last Thursday, will spend much of the next month confined to a hospital-style bed that’s parked in the lounge room of his parents’ home, with trips to the kitchen and the bathroom the extent of his movement.
“More than 20 metres up and back is sort of pushing it too far,” he said.
“I don’t have much use of my arms at the moment where the fractures were, and where the operation was, it was between my shoulder blades, so eating meals and things like that is still a little bit tricky at the moment.
“I can’t cut up food or anything like that; I’ve got to get it cut up for me.
“As I can gradually get more use of my arms back, it’ll be a bit better.”
Whether he resumes his career, in which he was good enough to represent the Geelong Falcons at Talent League level and play 21 matches with VFL club Werribee, is furthest from Bennett’s mind.
“Funnily enough, no, I haven’t given it any thought,” he said.
“I just want to take the next few months and step right back from any responsibilities and give myself the best opportunity that I can (to recover),
“While I’ve got this time off work, and while I don’t have any coaching commitments or anything like that, I’m putting the groundwork in so that down the track I’m able to achieve better results.
“I’ll try to do the right thing and take it slow.”
Bennett says the support he’s received since that fateful afternoon at Shell Reserve has helped lift his spirits, starting with a GoFundMe page that raised $26,000.
“Every single week I’m getting messages from someone who I haven’t seen for a while just going, ‘Hey mate. Just checking how you’re feeling’,” he said.
“When you are having a few of those bad days, and it feels like the world’s against me, when a message pops up from someone that you haven’t spoken to a lot for a while, it is pretty humbling just to know how many people genuinely care.
“Or someone bumps into mum and dad in a shopping centre, and you know they’re always talking and asking about me, it’s pretty crazy to think that you are loved and cared for by so many people.”
A plumber by trade, Bennett will hope to return to work in ten weeks, with long service leave with his employer ensuring he and fiancée Tiffany Blackney aren’t financially impacted.
Although he is unable to lift them, children Flynn, 5, Zahili, 3, and Harry, 9 months, are providing plenty of motivation during his recovery.
“It’s pretty cute at the moment,” Bennett said. “Flynn, he’s by my side every step of the way. He’s set up a little bed on the couch so that he sleeps next to me every night.
“And he knows how to put the rail down on my side bed so that any time I need to get up, it’s always him running over.
“He knows how to push the button to get it down. So just involving the kids in different ways.
“And it’s pretty special being back living with Mum and Dad.”
Bennett says being at home with his parents has been a “blessing” as they wait for a block of land he and Tiffany will build on to title in Bannockburn.
“Two of my best mates, Connor Walmsley and Lachie Hayes, bought on the same street,” he said.
“That’ll be exciting as we all build our houses together as all our little families start growing up.”
X: @krockfootball
