Alex Johnson epitomises hard work and persistence, he went through hell and back time and time again to achieve his dream to play AFL football.
(Photo: Sydney Swans Twitter)
Former Sydney Swans player, Alex Johnson reached the summit, winning an AFL premiership in his second year, before terrible injuries drove him out of the game he loved.
Alex Johnson knows what it’s like to go through the highs and lows of AFL and life, more than most other people ever will.
A player that had so much promise, and who started his career in brilliant style, cut down by debilitating injuries over the course of his career.
In Johnson’s first two years after being drafted, he played nearly every available game, which culminated in a heart-stopping AFL premiership victory in just his second year at 20 years of age.
Unfortunately, misery and misfortune were to follow for the rest of his career, as he endured six ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) reconstructions, five on his left knee and one on his right, and a total of 12 surgeries to get himself back to being healthy.
After 2012, Johnson would play just two more AFL games in the next six years, one stage saw him not play a proper competitive match for four years. He finished up having played 47 games from 2012-2018, winning a premiership and becoming one of the most respected Swans to pull on the jumper.
When I sat down to chat with Alex, he recalled the feeling of getting drafted but said it came with mixed emotions.
“I was absolutely rapt to get drafted and it had been my goal for a long time, but there’s obviously sadness that comes with it, leaving your family and friends behind,” he told the Back Pocket Banter Podcast.
Despite some struggles with moving away from Victoria, it didn’t take him long to make his mark on the big stage.
He made his debut the following season in Round three against the West Coast Eagles, before going on to play every game for the rest of the year.
His second season was equally brilliant, this time playing every game and finishing off with the holy grail, a premiership.
Johnson recalled being stunned with the realisation that he was a premiership player and would be for the rest of his life.
“It’s a surreal feeling, the whole finals series was pretty amazing. We had a pretty good year, we’d been pretty successful, but you sort of never think you’re going to make it into a grand final, let alone win it." - Alex Johnson.
He seemed destined for a long and successful career ahead.
Unfortunately, Alex suffered the first of many significant blows in the 2013 pre-season. A deafening silence and hush could be heard over Blacktown Stadium, as Johnson lay wincing in excruciating pain.
He recalled being rocked by the experience.
“I’d never really faced any injuries before, I’d had a few ankles and a few soft tissues growing up, I’d never really faced something as significant as an ACL,” he said.
This was just the beginning of a horrid run for Johnson, as he underwent two surgeries to get back for the 2014 season. He managed to get back early in the season, before re-rupturing his ACL in his first game back.
The fresh setback sparked complications and infections with his knee, and after multiple surgeries, he was unable to return to the field for over three years.
The toughest of times placed serious doubt over his ability to ever play again.
“It sort of turned into four or five years that I’d been on the sidelines, it becomes more and more unlikely that you’ll actually get back and play,” Johnson said.
He was delisted after the 2016 season, having not been able to showcase his talent since the 2012 grand final. However, he was given a lifeline, re-drafted by the Swans ahead of the 2017 season.
He was able to return mid-way through the 2017 season, for Sydney’s reserves team and finished off with some of the most consistent football in his career since his first knee injury.
One of his proudest moments came in Round 20, 2018, when he was able to beat all odds and return to the AFL side for the first time in a whopping six years, in front of friends and family.
The moment was so satisfying for the former Swan, as he’d worked tirelessly to return and had been told that it wouldn’t happen.
“There were a lot of people within media circles and footy circles that made comments that you’ll never get back, no one’s done it before, for me that was a driving factor,” Johnson said.
He was able to get through his return unscathed, capping off a brilliant return with a thrilling win over Collingwood.
Just one week passed, before his darkest fear became a reality and his career was over.
In a game against Melbourne, and his first game at the MCG since his triumph six years earlier, Alex Johnson was running around and doing what he loved once again.
“I was really pumped for it, to get back there (to the MCG), it’s my favourite ground to play on in front of friends and family back in Melbourne,” he said.
“Towards the end of the first quarter on the boundary line, my right knee gave way and buckled under me. It was a shocking moment; I’d never had an issue with my right knee.
“You know straight away, and I knew it was significant. The pain was more significant than any of the injuries I’d had on my left (knee).”
It was at that moment when he was helped down to the changerooms, that he knew his dream had come to an end.
Sport and AFL football are brutal games, where you can be on cloud nine one minute and come crashing back to earth the next.
“The reality is for guys that are playing in the AFL and professional sport throughout the world, their body is their career, and if you’ve got an issue with your body, you’ve got an issue with your career,” the premiership player said.
Despite his dream ending abruptly and facing mountains of adversity throughout his time in the AFL system, Johnson was able to accept his fate and credited all the people that had helped him along the journey.
“I’m hugely indebted to the Sydney Swans Football Club. They’ve stood by me the whole time, there’s not many stories of players not playing for three or four years in a stretch of a period,” he said.
“I’ve never really been too hung up on what if or what could’ve been, because the reality is (that) it isn’t, so you’ve got to deal with that.
“Never take no for an answer, the number of times I was written off and told that I wouldn’t be able to do certain things.” - Alex Johnson.
Listen to the full episode of the Back Pocket Banter Podcast below.
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