Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Hawthorn teenager Jack Dalton has revealed the extraordinary lengths his family went to after a horrific gym accident left him with two broken wrists during his draft year.
In just his third game with he club, the young forward impressed again, booting two goals and nailing six tackles in the Hawks’ Friday night win over GWS at the MCG.
Speaking to Channel 7 after the game, Dalton’s mum crashed the interview at the precise moment the young star was asked about the freak accident (and an image appeared of him in his hospital bed with both arms bandaged).
“Hello,” the proud mum said, while muscling in next to her son.
She was then asked what she had to do to help Jack get through the injury and, much to Jack’s embarrassment, that’s when the interview turned.
“There was a bit of bum wiping,” she playfully blurted out, with Jack quickly putting his arm over his mother’s mouth.
But much to the amusement of the commentators, she continued: “Showering. You know, just things you do for a toddler.”
The accident occurred while Dalton was box squatting in the gym with resistance bands on each side of the bar.
“Went down, came up, the bar rolled back, and both my wrists snapped,” Dalton explained.
Despite the setback, Dalton was drafted with pick 34 last year.
He then made his debut in Round 4, in the thrilling win over Geelong at the MCG on Easter Monday, the day after his birthday.
“How proud are you, of the boy … that (accident) was obviously in the draft year, which is massive … to see him now strutting his stuff on the MCG?” Dale Thomas asked Dalton’s mother.
“So proud, but so many sacrifices to get to this point, yeah,” she said, in a moment that clearly touched Jack.
“And to think that this time last year, he was pretty much … like that,” pointing to the photo of him in his hospital bed.
Dalton said he was loving his time at Hawthorn, crediting teammate Dylan Moore for being his main mentor.
“I just sit down, do a vision with him. I sit in his back pocket, probably annoy him a bit too much,” Dalton said. “But I’m just trying to get to where he was and he is.”
The young forward praised the club’s culture and his teammates’ support.
“It’s such an amazing group of people. And to come into training each week, each day, it’s like the best fun ever. It’s just a bunch of great guys. No ego,” he said.
“Everyone wants to get better. Everyone has that same determination and motivation towards the big success at the end of the year.”
Jack’s mother also revealed her father played for South Melbourne, and the family follows the Sydney Swans.
“My dad played for South Melbourne so, we are a Swans family, sort of … not really anymore,” she said before Jack interrupted.
“No, we’re a Hawks family now … don’t worry,” he quickly clarified.
But his mum hinted that allegiances hadn’t fully switched just yet: “We love the Hawks … we love the Swans as well.”
Those two teams currently sit second and third on the ladder and a finals match-up is very possible … which might make for some awkward viewing among the extended family.
Hawthorn and Sydney last played in a grand final in 2014, where the Swans were belted.
Two years earlier, however, Sydney won an epic grand final against the Hawks, with the game decided by just 10 points.
The Swans and Hawks have only played once this year, with Hawthorn winning that enthralling MCG contest by 17 points.
