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Richmond defender David Astbury has thrived during a disrupted AFL season in areas where many other players have struggled.
David Astbury will look back fondly on significant aspects of the pandemic-hit year regardless of whether he caps it all off with a third AFL premiership.
The Richmond defender managed to turn the season shutdown period and lengthy Hub stint under strict return-to-play protocols into positives while many of his contemporaries struggled.
Time spent on father Craig's farm near the small western Victorian town of Raglan and on mother Kate's property at the foot of the Grampians offered invaluable experiences.
Those and Gold Coast Hub life came as Melbourne has suffocated under tight restrictions enforced during the first and second waves of COVID-19.
"Throughout this whole year I've had the opportunity to get out of the city when it was a pretty sombre, hollow place," Astbury told AAP.
"I was still able to see family and the restrictions that I was under were still trying, but they weren't the same.
"If there's anything that I was really grateful for during that time, it was that I got to spend time with both of my parents individually and talk about different things because we didn't have the weekend's game to talk about.
"It's something that I'll look back on and be really fond of."
Astbury's training program during the shutdown involved a homemade weights frame and bench and running sessions on the local football ground at Tatyoon.
It left him well-placed to attack the season restart in June.
"I'm proud of the training that I did when it was hard to motivate yourself at different stages," Astbury said.
"Funnily enough, as much as it sort of took my job and livelihood away from me, it gave me something different that I'm certainly grateful for."
At 29, with 137 games under his belt, Astbury is no stranger to injury.
It struck again when he suffered cartilage damage in his right knee in June but the strong backman returned late in the season to take up his customary role in defence alongside rising star Noah Balta and seasoned campaigners Dylan Grimes, Nick Vlastuin and Bachar Houli.
Together, they'll play a key role in chasing the Tigers' third premiership in four years when they tackle Geelong at the Gabba on Saturday night.
Astbury will face an important duel with Geelong power forward Tom Hawkins, the Coleman Medal winner, and will support Toby Nankervis in the ruck.
"I've had some good battles with Tom and you've got to respect such a remarkable player, particularly when they're in such a remarkable vein of form," Astbury said.
