Adam Doueihi, the injured playmaker for the Wests Tigers, is cautiously confident that he will be back in the game by July while not wanting to give a specific time frame for his third ACL tear. He is still completing important recovery milestones.
When the gifted 25-year-old fell awkwardly and stayed down during the last ten minutes of a game against the Eels on April 10 of last season, there was a deflated vibe around Accor Stadium. Everyone there was hoping it wasn’t what it looked like.
However, scans revealed the worst: Doueihi had suffered his third ACL tear, which would prevent him from playing for 12 to 16 months following surgery.
He remarked, “It’s always tough, especially being my third one,” nearly a full year after agreeing to a one-year contract extension for the 2024 campaign.
“I understand the physical and psychological toll that going through the rehab process can take on you; therefore, there are days when you’re by yourself and you tend to overthink things.”
However, I’ve behaved myself admirably this time. I am aware of what to anticipate and the requirements for returning.
About 30 weeks have passed since my surgery, and I feel like I’m improving every week.
“As long as I continue to win on a daily and weekly basis, I am confident that I will eventually recover and reach my peak playing football again.”
Alongside John Bateman, who underwent minor clean-out surgery in the off-season, the Tigers star, who has been running for the past two months, trained separately from the main group on Thursday morning.
Doueihi remarked, “I’m just taking things slower and more relaxed this time around. I’ve had no hiccups on the field.”
“Everything appears to be proceeding according to plan.
“When you start to cross these objectives off your list, it’s huge for any rehab player.”
“When you cross those hurdles—starting to run again, changing direction, and doing reactive stuff—it does help when you suffer a long-term injury, as I’ve done a few times.”
Despite playing in just 87 NRL games over the course of six seasons, Doueihi is overdue for some good fortune. The dynamic playmaker demonstrated his ability with nine tries in 2021 before suffering a knee injury against Cronulla.
That kept him out for about a year and a half, but Doueihi is not going to return so quickly this time around, preferring to play it carefully in case doing more damage is less likely.
He stated, “I haven’t looked at any games where I might return.”
The topic of a mid-season return, possibly in July, has been discussed.
Since this is my third attempt at doing it, I don’t really care if it happens sooner or not. I just want to make sure that I do everything in my power to make it 110% powerful.
“I want to make sure that when I return, I know that it shouldn’t happen again.”
