Dempster, who ruptured his ACL in the Saints’ round 22 win over Essendon, says if he doesn’t hit any hiccups in his rehabilitation, he should be right to play in June.
“For now there will be no running for probably another two months. I’m allowed to start running just before Christmas and another six months after that I can play,” Dempster told saints.com.au.
Dempster is walking freely with minimal pain just five weeks after going under the knife. He says he is happy with his progress.
“It’s not too bad. I was on crutches for just two weeks. It makes it a bit easier to be able to walk around and do stuff myself,” he said.
“I’m on as bit of a program. I still get physio throughout the week and I’ve got to see the surgeon in a couple of weeks. After that I can start bike riding just to build the leg back up again.”
Saints coach Ross Lyon publicly threw his support behind the former Sydney Swan premiership player after the injury. But despite his future being assured, the 24-year-old admits he was down in the dumps as his teammates embarked on a finals campaign.
“Definitely," Dempster said when speaking of his disappointment. "You play football to play in finals and to do it in the last round of the home and away season -- to miss out on three final games -- was a bit disappointing,” he said.
Dempster said he had enjoyed his first season at St Kilda after crossing over in last year’s trade period.
He says he has drawn on support from his teammates since the injury, particularly Lenny Hayes, Jayden Attard and Brendon Goddard, who have all previously undergone knee reconstructions.
“All the boys have been very welcoming from the start and I really enjoyed my footy this year. I probably found a little bit of improvement this year that I hadn’t had for the last couple of years,” he said.
“I’ve spoken with all the guys who have been there before. It’s a long road to recovery but from everything they’ve said they haven’t had much trouble with it since they came back so that’s giving me something positive.”
