JONATHAN Brown wrapped up the Coleman Medal with a seven-goal haul against Geelong on Saturday night and seems a certainty to earn a first All-Australian guernsey in a few weeks time.
But what most pleased the star Brisbane Lion forward about his 2007 campaign was his ability to get through it at all.
After a suspension-interrupted 2004, Brown played only 24 games across 2005 and 2006 because of osteitis pubis and a hip complaint.
"I said it during the week – my only goal before this season was to play the whole year,” Brown said.
"It’s been a frustrating three years – with one bad suspension year and two bad injury years, when you should be at the peak of your powers.
”I’ve achieved my goal. Unfortunately I didn’t get to play finals but I did get the 22 games and anything else was always going to be a bonus.”
Brown has built a reputation for unparalleled toughness. He will push his body to breaking point and beyond and has the willingness to go with the flight of the ball in marking contests.
It is somewhat ironic then, that he partly credits the far from aggressive Pilates with helping him get back to his rampaging best.
Brown’s range of kicking improved noticeably as the season went on and in the last month he regularly bisected the big sticks from outside 50m.
”Back at the split round I was a bit worried whether my body would get back to the way it used to move.” Brown admitted.
”I’d lost fair bit of power and mobility but I was able to up the training tempo and I finished the year off with a lot of confidence.
”I think I’ve corrected a lot of issues around my core that had been bugging me for the last two or three years.
”I’ve probably got a bit stronger and more flexible with my range – I certainly seem to be kicking it the furthest I ever have in my career.
”It was a long slow process of Pilates and all those things. Two of the Pilates girls annoyed the hell out of me with it and I thought I was getting nowhere, but I’m glad to get a bit of reward for that hard work.”
After finishing the season with 77 goals – one shy of Alastair Lynch’s club record – it seems a mere formality that Brown will be named an All-Australian.
Certainly it would be if his coach Leigh Matthews had anything to do with the selection process.
”I don’t pick the side but I would think he’s a certainty,” Matthews said.
”You’d be very surprised if he doesn’t get the nod. He’s had a really consistent year, particularly the second half.”
Brown entered the final round of the home-and-away campaign locked in a two-man race with Fremantle forward Matthew Pavlich for the Coleman.
Pavlich could only manage four goals in the Dockers’ 32-point loss to Port Adelaide and Brown jokingly “thanked” Fremantle coach Mark Harvey for dropping six players for disciplinary lapses.
