He was almost ready to go last weekend, but after a much needed hit out at Sandringham, St Kilda star Leigh Montagna says he has overcome the calf strain that interrupted his pre-season and is ready to get back to work.
Montagna, 33, missed the entire JLT Community Series after straining his calf in early February, but returned at Trevor Barker Oval last Sunday where he played three quarters to regain some touch and fitness ahead of St Kilda’s trip across the Nullarbor.
“I’m fit and well now. If you asked me I was almost ready to put my hand up last week but I just needed a bit of a hitout,” Montagna told saints.com.au on Thursday night ahead of St Kilda’s clash with West Coast on Saturday night.
“I hadn’t played any practice matches or anything like that this year, but I got that under the belt, feel good and I’m looking forward to going over to Perth.”
Montagna, who finished fourth in the Trevor Barker Award last year in his 15th season in the game, admits it was frustrating to suffer the setback at the tail end of the pre-season but is confident he can find his best form quickly.
“It was frustrating because I got through to January and was going pretty well and just got a bit tight in the calf and then strained it. It set me back about five or six weeks,” Montagna said.
“Hopefully with a lot of history under the belt and a lot of pre-seasons my conditionings come back pretty quick.
“It will take me a few games to get my groove back, but hopefully not too long and I can contribute this weekend.”
After the disappointing 30-point loss to Melbourne, Montagna said the Saints reviewed their performance thoroughly early in the week and identified where things went wrong against the Demons.
“We got over it pretty quick, reviewed it pretty strongly Monday and ‘Richo’ was pretty quick to get the boys back on the horse,” he said.
“We were disappointing after quarter-time but we know what we did wrong which is a good sign.
“We’ve just got to make sure we play more consistent and bring that pressure that’s our number one target for four quarters and if we do that we give ourselves a chance.”
