As Jamarra Ugle-Hagan returned to training this week, Jesse Hogan, a man who’s weathered his own AFL storms, has offered a personal slice of advice to the young Bulldog.
Hogan, the reigning Coleman Medallist and now settled at GWS after stints with Melbourne and Fremantle, knows what it’s like when footy loses its spark.
Speaking on AFL 360, he urged Ugle-Hagan to reconnect with the joy that first drew him to the game.
‘Enjoy the grind again’
“The biggest thing for me when I was going through a rough patch was I just lost passion for the game, I didn’t enjoy the grind,” Hogan said. “It became really tough, and that’s when my mind kind of wandered.”
“I didn’t really enjoy going to work, I didn’t enjoy getting to the club, I wasn’t enjoying the small things that when you were 16 or 17, you did enjoy.”
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Ugle-Hagan has faced a challenging period off the field, and while he’s now back with the main group at the Western Bulldogs, Hogan said rediscovering the simple love for the game was crucial.
“Until you figure out the smaller things and you can really strip it all back and start to enjoy those things and put really good people around you... it can get really hard,” Hogan added.
“He can make it work, absolutely he can.”