Border Mail | IT may have been a first in Hume league history.
The reigning Azzi medallist running around in the seconds.
But that was the predicament for Brock-Burrum midfielder Nico Sedgwick last weekend.
Sedgwick said he had only himself to blame after spending most of the summer pursuing his passion of hunting and fishing rather than on the training track.
“Over the summer I wasn’t 100 per cent if I was going to play footy again this year,” he said.
“I love my hunting and fishing and went to Darwin for a month before the season started and didn’t train.
“The team rule is if you don’t train, you don’t play.
“So I copped my medicine and played in the seconds, but I will be back in the seniors this week.
“The funny thing is I didn’t really set the world on fire and I reckon it’s a lot harder trying to get a kick in the twos.”
Sedgwick, 22, joined the Saints last season after two injury-riddled seasons with Lavington.
After failing to poll a vote in the first six rounds, Sedgwick pipped Saints co-coach Luke Brauer for the Azzi Medal after polling in 11 of the last 13 matches.
Fortunately for the Saints, Sedgwick has agreed to play on for another season after the team lost five players from their 2013 premiership team in Kylin Morey, Darryn McKimmie, Joe and Ron Boulton and Kallam Oates over the summer.
While the losses prompted many pundits to predict a Saint slide this season, Sedgwick was confident they could remain a finals force.
“I’ve got no doubt we have a lot better side than most people think,” he said.
“I think our recruits are a lot better players than what we lost.
“Jarrod Hillary, Chris Taylor and Joel Hartley add a fair bit to our big man stocks and give us a few options when you come up against teams like Howlong who boast a couple of power forwards in Dicketts and Gray.
“Obviously McKimmie will be the hardest to replace, not only as a player but his leadership as well.”
Hillary had an instant impact last week with five goals deep in attack, while Taylor was also among the Saints best.
Hartley is still at least a month away as he continues to recover from a knee reconstruction.
