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00:00Big moment for Dowie Lick, he's back after a bicep surgery.
00:05Yeah, he's an incredible athlete, great to have him back in, he's been injured.
00:16How you doing there?
00:17What, like yesterday?
00:18Yeah.
00:20Nice guy.
00:22Injury occurred the week of the Scarlets match pre-Christmas with the Ospreys in a training session.
00:30It was quite obvious that something had occurred with a bicep.
00:33So obviously emotions were quite high there knowing I'd likely miss the Six Nations.
00:40Again, was disappointing, yeah.
00:44Dowie's progress was quick.
00:47As part of the rehab process, it was important that we could track Dowie's progress.
00:52So we had a number of different tests that would progress over the course of his rehabilitation
00:57that allowed us to just make sure he was where he needed to be
00:59and that we could then deliver Dowie ready and fit for Scotland.
01:03Need it there?
01:04No.
01:07Nice guy.
01:09Nice guy.
01:11Yeah, I guess it's tough doing like a slow progress thing
01:15because you don't always see major progress.
01:18I guess we did at the start, you know, progress was coming quite thick and fast
01:22and then, you know, towards the end you're kind of just chasing little bits
01:26and you feel like you're not making as much progress.
01:29But no, we kept positive throughout, that's what we needed to do to keep on the road to recovery.
01:34But yeah, Sterlo was great with keeping positivity.
01:37So, like, you're so far ahead of schedule.
01:43But, like, my theory is, though, like, if you don't, but we keep going like we are,
01:48mate, you're going to be so well prepped.
01:50Like, mate, 10%, 20% nearly.
01:53Yeah.
01:54Like, so you're going to hit that easy. Does that make sense?
01:56Yeah, yeah.
01:57So, like, we're flying.
01:58I think the testing helps and obviously as Dowie went through all of the weeks
02:03he boxed off everything he needed to.
02:05He was well on track from sort of week four.
02:08In those early stages, it was about us making sure that his sort of strength was progressing as we wanted.
02:14And then obviously then towards the end, it's about pushing him because we wanted to see exactly where he was.
02:19It was well planned, so we knew exactly what he needed to do.
02:21But the big part is the personal piece.
02:23Where possible, we made it as fun as we could, joined him with him.
02:25It was obviously just me and him here while the squad was out in Nice preparing for those games.
02:30So it's trying to keep the energy as high as possible, make it as fun as possible where appropriate,
02:34but also understanding what work needed to get done and taking some pride in that too.
02:38Did you bring hair and makeup with you?
02:39Can I keep up with him now, alright?
02:47That's a ridiculous walking speed, isn't it?
02:49Combating negative thoughts helped having Sterlo around.
02:52No, a lot of laughs as well.
02:54We didn't just focus on just the bad things.
02:57We had a bit of a laugh in between working hard as well, which obviously makes things a lot easier.
03:02But yeah, things don't always go how you want them to.
03:05There's a couple of tests where we'd gone backwards from the previous test.
03:09And those are just things that happen.
03:11It's just about keeping looking forward.
03:18So the fitness element was pretty intense during that period that the boys were out in France and Italy.
03:23But it was a really integral part of the process.
03:25The classes he had before he went out were really particular about how that needed to look
03:29and how we progressed him through so that when he came to integrate into training,
03:32he boxed again everything off that we needed with regards to volume, high speed and density of training.
03:38So it went really well, but it was a pretty dark place for him, I think, at times.
03:44Moving loads better today.
03:46Basically, this is a test. You're going to be pulling up from there.
03:51The isokinetic test is a really nice way to identify any underlying weaknesses in strength
03:56and different elements of strength too, so concentric and eccentric.
03:59First test was at eight weeks. He tested really, really well.
04:01So me and Pat were pleased, but not quite as well as we needed with regards to being back to pre-function strength level.
04:10Yeah, probably quite nervous because I think we were aiming for certain scores,
04:15certain testing scores that would allow us to get back into training and into playing.
04:20So yeah, there was obviously a target that we had to hit for that.
04:24So yeah, I was quite nervous going into that.
04:42I'm really happy with that. That is genuinely choice.
04:46The right felt like I could have done the third.
04:49The left didn't feel like I could have done the third test.
04:52There's only one way to celebrate it.
04:55Song of choice was Clocks Go Forward by James Bay.
04:59We played it at least twice a day, maybe three times.
05:02Yeah, maybe five.
05:07There are a number of other tests we did with regards to the plyometric push-up.
05:11We did the inner range strength test.
05:13And we're just trying to look at the bicep in different positions and different functional tasks
05:17to make sure that we didn't make assumptions just based off one test.
05:21And they were then applicable and would transfer into his performance.
05:27Obviously, there's the bicep that we have to rehab,
05:29but we also have to rehab him so he's fit to play rugby.
05:32So there's a number of different elements around neck strength, fitness as gym
05:35and other elements that S&C and nutrition would pick up.
05:38So it's a real sort of multidisciplinary approach to make sure that
05:41every element of his preparation was on point.
05:45Of course, it's nice to integrate back into the group and be around the boys.
05:50And, you know, you get that boost of energy from being around people.
06:04On three. One, two, three.
06:06Yeah!
06:15Inside, boy.
06:18As with our rehab plan, Dowie's integration into rugby
06:21and ultimately return against Scotland was all planned.
06:24So it was a very progressive approach.
06:26Obviously, we started with non-contact training.
06:28And then, obviously, functionally, we took him through the weeks as he was nearer to Scotland.
06:33And I think he had about three weeks in full training,
06:35which was a real nice preparation into a game week.
06:42Wait.
06:44Pad.
06:47I think you're always wanting more.
06:49I think I knew there was, you know, a target that I had to hit
06:52in order for me to get back.
06:54And I didn't hit that target on the first time round.
06:57But, you know, Pat and Sterlo reminded me that it was just, you know,
07:00first test and for where we were in our rehab block,
07:04that it was a pretty good start.
07:07Last one. Big push.
07:10Oh.
07:12That week eight was early for isokinetic testing,
07:15but also it gave us a real clear picture of exactly where he was.
07:18And we were really pleased with that.
07:20And it also then gave us enough time to repeat the test
07:23and only hit all the gold standards that we'd looked for
07:25with regards to absolute values, but also comparison to his other side.
07:29That was lovely. Thank you very much.
07:35Ball!
07:37Well done.
07:39You know, as you're getting closer and you know
07:41it's likely to be your time to come on the field
07:44and try and make an impact,
07:46probably the nerves take over you again.
07:48But I think as soon as you're on the field
07:50and you kind of get your first involvement,
07:51you know, first carrier, first tackle,
07:53you kind of settle into the game.
07:55Big moment for Towie Lick. He's back after a bicep surgery.
07:59As well as rehab went and looking at how we tracked his progress,
08:03he's very confident that he'll be ready to go.
08:05But obviously then there's always that sort of anxiety
08:07of things happen in rugby and there's something
08:09that you can't prepare for. It's a character game.
08:11So, yeah, no, really proud to appreciate how much hard work
08:14that he put in along the process.
08:16And a nice season to come through and play well.
08:19Towie Lick.
08:23And Wales put a silver star on their finish here
08:27through Max Llewellyn.
08:29They can! They've ambushed Scotland on the blow!
08:34You don't see some of the hard times, I guess.
08:36Behind things like this, you know, we had a couple of dark days,
08:40dark training sessions, you know, a couple of, like you said,
08:45setbacks and then coming through them and to get the reward
08:48at the end, which was to be back on the field,
08:50back in the squad with the boys, is worth it all in the end.
08:53And seeing Murrayfield so busy was class.
08:56Can't thank Sturlow and the guys enough that stayed behind
08:59and helped out with, you know, rehab, the recovery process
09:03and getting me back up to test level standard
09:08in a very short amount of time.
09:10We got a lot closer off the field with Kaz.
09:12I've got to mention Kaz because she was a big part of it as well.
09:15Kaz was a massive part of it.
09:16She's like our matriarch.
09:17Kaz, yeah, she's more than a team player.
09:20She's the leader, really, isn't she?
09:22Yeah, she's like our family mother.
09:24Yes.