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AMID the hype of the Fevola-Lance show on Saturday night, Ryan Houlihan quietly achieved a significant personal goal. He played his second AFL game in a row completely free of the hip pain that ruined his 2008 season.
Houlihan, 26, was forced to have surgery after round three in a bid to free himself of a debilitating condition brought about by years of wear and tear and has fought back well to feature in Carlton's final two games of the season.
"It's been a disappointing year for me, but right now my body has never felt so good," Houlihan told carltonfc.com.au after the match.
“It's a real positive for me to be able to get back and play the last two games. My hips and groins have never felt better.
"I was very excited in that first quarter against the Lions last week, it was good to get a few goals on the board early, but I got a bit tired in the second half and tonight I didn't hit the scoreboard. It was good to contribute, but I just got a bit tired towards the end again.
"It just feels like I'm getting started, but I'll have a big off-season, get the body right and hopefully be in a position to really attack next year."
It's an impressive comeback considering the serious nature of the operation Houlihan underwent and the length of time he was out of senior football.
"I had both hips done in the end. What they did is shave about two centimetres of bone off all the way around the hip and then they re-attached the labrum with six anchors throughout the whole area. It was pretty intense.
"It was very painful and required a really long rehab, but it worked so I'm really glad I got it done.
"It was a long time to be out, but I tried to remain positive throughout. It was actually good to come to the footy and watch the guys grow, but I suppose I've been here for nine years and to go through five years of tough times and get injured as soon as the team starts winning again was tough to sit back and watch at times.
"But now I'm just looking forward to getting fit and having a big pre-season."
