Blaine Boekhorst made a lively return to action for the Northern Blues in their 13-point loss on Saturday evening.

Playing his first game since fracturing his wrist in May, Boekhorst collected 16 disposals and kicked two goals in an encouraging performance.

Boekhorst kicked both goals in the second quarter which saw the Blues get on the board, in a game where they ultimately fell short after a brave fightback. 

The 22-year-old said the wrist was feeling good and he was glad to be back playing footy, despite the result.

“The wrist is fine, it pulled up well - the body was a bit sore from the game as per usual,” Boekhorst said.

“I enjoyed my time out there, now we’re focused on getting the win next time.” 

The youngster played in the early weeks of the AFL season, but hamstring and wrist injuries have seen him missing from senior action since Round 3. 

Confident his injury troubles were now behind him, Boekhorst said he was hopeful of an AFL return in the coming weeks.

“The goal is to get back into the AFL side like the start of the year and play some consistent footy.” 

“If I’m playing VFL footy, it’s about showing some leadership, rallying around the boys and ideally getting as many wins as possible.” 

Boekhorst’s return and the team’s spirit were two of the pleasing aspects from a Northern perspective in a match where it was again left to rue a slow start. 

After trailing by as much as 46 points at the main change, the Blues rallied to kick nine of the next 11 goals to draw within as little as seven points in the last quarter. 

It was the third time this season Northern trailed by five goals in the first half before drawing within single digits in the final term: Boekhorst said it was a disappointing trend but one the players had identified needed addressing. 

“We definitely felt in the second quarter we were starting to get some momentum back, but we didn’t hit the scoreboard enough which hurt us,” Boekhorst said. 

“We rallied in the second half, got it going and it was good to see everyone getting around each other. 

“Going into next week we have to get that start right and put ourselves in the best position to win it.” 

The Northern Blues host Geelong this Saturday at Ikon Park from 2pm.